AZ: AZCDL Alert - Contact Governor in support of HB 2630

I just received the following e-mail alert form AZCDL:

HB 2630, an AzCDL requested bill that reduces the penalty for carrying a concealed weapon without a permit to a petty offense, passed the Senate Final Read on April 23, 2008, by a vote of 17-10 with 3 Senators not voting. It was transmitted to the Governor on April 24, 2008. HB 2630 passed the House on March 8, 2008 by a vote of 36-24.

HB 2630 reclassifies carrying a concealed weapon without a permit as a petty offense, unless the violation occurs in the commission or attempted commission of:

1. A "serious offense or violent crime" in which case the CCW offense is a class 6 felony, or

2. Any other felony, in which case it's a class 1 misdemeanor.

In a nutshell, if you're a bad guy carrying a concealed weapon, penalties have been stiffened. If you're a law-abiding citizen, it's a petty offense.

Under current law, if you have not been issued a concealed weapons (CCW) permit, it is a class 1 misdemeanor for anyone to carry a concealed weapon. Everyone is treated like a hardened criminal. Sadly, because of a couple of 1994 Appellate Court decisions:

There is no clear, objective standard in statute that you can rely on to determine if you are violating the law.

If a casual observer cannot easily see your firearm, you are carrying concealed and could be arrested.

Wearing a gun in a vehicle = concealed carry. Without a permit you are subject to arrest.

Having a CCW permit and wearing a gun in a vehicle puts your non-CCW permit passengers at risk for being arrested for carrying concealed without a permit.

HB 2630 separates the innocent mistake by law-abiding citizens from the actions of hardcore criminals. HB 2630 even adds the "attempted commission of a serious offense" language to the law, to assist law enforcement in arresting the bad guys.
It is VERY important to contact the Governor and urge her to sign HB 2630 into law. You can use your own message, or you can use the cut-and-paste message below. Her email address is azgov@az.gov. You can also call her at 602-542-4331 or 800-253-0883, or fax a letter to her at 602-542-1381.

You can also go to the Governor's website, http://azgovernor.gov/Contact.asp, where you will find a fill-in-the-blanks form to register your opinion. For "subject", scroll down and select "Legislation." For "topic", fill in "HB 2630."

Or you can mail it to her at the following address:

The Honorable Janet Napolitano
Governor of Arizona
1700 West Washington
Phoenix, Arizona 85007

There you have it folks. Governor Napolitano normally veto's legislation like this with snide remarks to the effect of "If you want to carry a gun, get a permit" - it is time we let her know exactly what we think about that.

As for me, I've called, sent an e-mail, used her online form, faxed a letter, and placed a letter in the mail. There is absolutely no way that she will not know exactly how I feel about this legislation. If she once again turns on law abiding gun owners by giving this bill a Veto along with a snide remark, I'll once again vote to turn her out of office come next election, & I'll make sure that every single gun owner in Arizona that I can reach out to will know exactly how she puts into place her so-called "support of gun owners" that she pledged both times she has run for the office.

Senate vote details are here. House vote details are here. Check to see how your representative represented you. If they voted in favor of this bill, be sure to thank them. If they voted against it or chose to not vote at all, let them know what you think of that as well.