I just found it very odd that they would publish such a thing. I guess the Sherrif's office of each county keeps track of the info and publishes it.
Sort of defeats the purpose of a "consealed" weapon if you are published in the newspaper as carrying one.
Here's a related topic that was posted as well:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iowa sheriffs take care in deciding who can carry handguns in public
By Steve Gravelle
Gun dealer Roger Howe has turned away potential customers looking to arm themselves for self-protection.
"She said, 'I just want a gun to scare somebody,' " Howe recalled of one customer at his Ammo Bearer shop in Iowa City. "Well, you don't buy a gun to scare somebody. I just told her I wouldn't sell it to her."
Howe, one of 25,686 Iowa civilians with a permit to carry a concealed weapon in public, thinks those arming themselves must think through the implications of carrying a weapon.
"We don't tell what it is because people would just write that" in their application, he said. "It's just whether they fit our criteria. They have to show a bona fide need."
It comes down to tradition in many Eastern Iowa counties.
"Our previous sheriff (Ron Wilhelm) didn't really issue a whole lot, and that just carried over," said John LeClere, who became Delaware County's sheriff 15 months ago.
There are just 15 active permits in Delaware County -- just 0.81 per 1,000 residents. By contrast, Iowa County, population 15,671, is home to 370 permit holders -- 23.6 per 1,000 residents.
"The proof's in the pudding," said Iowa County Sheriff Jim Slockett, who's revoked "about a handful" of permits in his 22 years in office.
"If they can reasonably justify it, they get one," said Slockett. "We're a small enough county, it's pretty unusual we don't know someone."
The rare applicant he doesn't know is invited in for a personal interview, Slockett said.
Benton County Sheriff Kenneth Popenhagen, who issued 213 permits last year, said he approves fewer applications than in the past. "I can't help but think I'm still liable if I put my name on it," he said.
Popenhagen decided to issue fewer permits after learning a few Benton County permit holders behaved irresponsibly, such as by carrying guns into Cedar Rapids taverns.
Popenhagen approves permits for work-related reasons -- not for self-protection -- "unless they've been police officers or have had the training."
"If you're having that much of a problem, you need to figure out where there needs to be some changes made in your life," Popenhagen said. "You're better off getting us involved."
System working
Local law enforcement officials offer generally positive assessments of Iowa's system.
"In my opinion, it works pretty well," said Cedar Rapids Police Chief Mike Klappholz.
Iowa City Police Chief R.J. Winkelhake said Johnson County Sheriff Robert Carpenter has consulted him "two or three times" about city residents who have applied for carry permits.
"Our experience has been very limited with it, and it hasn't been a bad experience," Winkelhake said. "My impression is the sheriff is doing a very good job."
Black Hawk County Sheriff Mike Kubik, who's issued 1,605 carry permits, thinks the system works.
He requires a "substantial" justification before issuing a carry permit -- "You have to have more than just personal protection."
Kubik thinks local sheriffs are best equipped to decide who needs to carry a firearm in public.
"The sheriff should have at least a little knowledge of his county," he said. "We deal with these people on a daily basis. If someone from outside the area was checking, they wouldn't know (applicants) from Adam."
Sheriffs also may set restrictions on permits. In Black Hawk and most other counties, permit holders can't carry their weapons into bars, for example.
"We tell them flat out: If you're in a bar with a gun, we'll revoke them," said Kubik.
Those with work-related reasons to go armed may receive a "professional" class permit that limits their gun carrying to work hours and to travel to and from the job.
Standards not standard
Howe, the Iowa City gun dealer, would like to see such limitations consistent across the state.
"The biggest thing right now, I think, is the inconsistency from one county to the next," he said. "A person can have a valid permit for 15, 16 years and move across the street, and suddenly now they're under the discretion of a new sheriff."
Zeller, too, also would like consistent standards but with sheriffs retaining the ultimate authority.
"I wish that all of the sheriffs could operate under the same criteria," he said.
State law requires residents to obtain a new permit immediately upon moving to another county, and Zeller has dealt with holders who expected the transfer to be automatic.
"People become upset, but you have to look at the environment those people are from," he said.
He estimated his staff spends six hours a day checking applicants' criminal records and otherwise maintaining the permit list.
Training required
Carry permits aren't required to keep a weapon at home or to carry a weapon on one's own property, or even to transport a weapon, assuming it's in a case or the trunk of a vehicle.
Zeller said many applicants decide they don't need a carry permit after learning the legal responsibilities that accompany the permit.
Each sheriff must provide a qualification course for carry permit applicants. In Linn County, it's provided by Izaak Walton League instructors. The charge for the five-hour classroom course, which is followed by a shooting exercise, is $25.
State keeps list
Each county's list of permit holders is forwarded to the state Department of Public Safety, which does very little with the names.
"By statute, the sheriffs send us a copy of every permit, but we have them only in paper form," Knowles said. "They're not organized, they're not computerized."
Zeller said a deputy may consult the permit list before serving a warrant, but its practical police uses are limited: Anyone may legally keep a weapon at home, where a warrant is most likely to be served.
And, he said, most law enforcement officials figure more firearms are carried illegally than with a permit.
For those reasons, local police don't closely monitor their counties' permit lists.
Local officials couldn't think of any recent incidents involving an armed civilian.
"That's one thing that's always bugged me about crime statistics in general," said Howe, the Iowa City gun dealer who has degrees in sociology and criminology from the University of Iowa.
In most incidents, "the gun was used to prevent a crime, but there's no statistic because the gun was not fired."
Facebook
Twitter