What cops say about new S.C. constitutional carry gun law
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Some law enforcement agencies are weighing in on Gov. Henry McMaster’s decision to sign a constitutional carry ― or permitless carry ― bill into law.
McMaster signed the constitutional carry into law on Thursday just a day after the South Carolina Senate ed a compromise.
It would allow a person 18 or older who can legally own a gun to openly carry their weapons without a permit or training.
Last year, several law enforcement agencies from across the state testified before legislators on why the legislature should not a bill like this.
Training began Monday for recruits at the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy. That training will consist of lectures and hypothetical scenarios officers could face while in the field.
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Academy Director Jackie Swindler said he believes this new law will have an impact on the dynamic between law enforcement and the community.
“The potential is there for a lot of things to happen,” Swindler said.
Because of that, Swindler said officers and deputies may approach situations differently than they would before the constitutional carry bill was signed into law.
“People seem to have lost patience, people seem to have different temperaments,” he said.
“Now with the readily available of anyone having a gun or carrying a gun, that certainly does have the potential for different interactions between people. It certainly changes the dynamic of police answering calls and stopping cars,” he continued.
Newbery County Sheriff Lee Foster said, “I think the training should be mandatory, because I think a lot of people with good intentions, may get into trouble because they don’t know what the laws are.”
Sherriff Foster said most officers and deputies have to undergo routine gun training ― and citizens who want to own a weapon should be held to that same standard.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division sent this guidance to law enforcement immediately after the governor signed constitutional carry into law.
Some of the points included in the guidance were possession of a firearm alone is not a reason to stop an individual, a person carrying a weapon does not have to notify law enforcement, and there are no restrictions on having a gun inside of your vehicle.
Foster, who sits on the state’s sheriff’s association board, said that part of the law is most concerning.
“That could also be interpreted that an 18-year-old that is a student in a high school or educational facility can have that weapon on campus,” he said. “Not inside of the school but on campus within their vehicle. That needs to be cleaned up and addressed.”
Sheriff Foster said the South Carolina Sherriff’s Association took a neutral stance on constitutional carry when it was a bill while the South Carolina Police Chief’s Association was against it.
“Anytime somebody has a weapon, we want them to be safe. We encourage them to carry in a holster, we encourage them to go to a class,” said J.J. Jones, executive director of the association.
of the association from across the state testified in front of legislators last year on the importance of gun training, but he said despite their reservations about the governor’s decision, they stand behind it.
“The people have spoken. The House and the Senate voted overwhelmingly to this law and our governor signed it ... we will follow the law he enacted and we’ll train our officers to be as safe as they can,” he said.
The law states you don’t even need to notify law enforcement if you have a weapon on you or in your car, but Director Swindler is advising people to let officers and deputies know especially if you’re being pulled over.
We also reached out to Sheriff Leon Lott for a response to this law. He sent this statement which reads in part:
“I said a prayer last night that Richland County does not turn into the wild wild west,” he said. “This is a win for the criminals, who can now walk around with a gun and law enforcement cannot do anything about it.”
“I the right to carry and it was already in place with conceal weapons permit and the proper training, but this does nothing to make our communities safer; instead of getting guns off the street we just put more guns on the street,” the statement continues.
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