Rights delayed are rights denied.
Detroit-area residents seeking to exercise their right to keep and bear arms know this all too well as the current wait to get a meeting with the county clerk’s office to obtain a concealed carry permit has been pushed back to 2022, in some cases.
Local news affiliate Fox 2 interviewed Wayne County commissioner Melissa Daub about the unconscionably long delay.
“I was a little surprised that I was getting calls again this past week and the week before, calls and emails from my constituents saying they still couldn’t get an appointment,” said Daub.
“That the wait time was 10 months long. I went online this morning and I tried to book an appointment and the earliest I can get an appointment is January 17, 2022.”
A spike in demand for permits along with appointment-only processing due to COVID-19 has made a bad situation worse.
SEE ALSO: Utah Waits on Gov. Cox to Sign Constitutional Carry
“Clerk Garrett has expressed concerns about her department being short-staffed. That has been a long-term issue, and lack of office space,” Daub explained.
Daub said the clerk’s office got a boost in funding in September to the tune of $74,000 as part of the CARES Act. That money was earmarked for additional staff and new fingerprinting equipment designed to streamline the process.
“Because the commission had approved that extra funding for the clerk’s office to get that extra equipment, I was surprised that the wait time was still long and actually increased,” Daub said.
Commissioner Daub plans on further addressing the matter at a government operations committee meeting Wednesday.
“I think all the commissioners just want to come together and work together so residents of Wayne County can get the services they deserve in a timely matter,” she said.
Daub added, “I don’t want this to seem like the clerk’s office is not doing their job. They are working very hard with the limited resources they have and it’s been very stressful with the pandemic.”
Alan Gottlieb, the founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, had zero patience for the situation in Wayne County.
“This is totally unacceptable. A right delayed is a right denied,” he told GunsAmerica via email.
“If Detroit can’t get their act together then no one should be prosecuted for carrying a firearm for self-protection as long as they refuse to issue permits. Period,” he added.
Makes sense. If county officials can’t figure out a solution to quickly restore one’s right to bear arms, all law-abiding citizens should be allowed to carry hassle-free — precisely the way the founders and framers intended.
Here’s an idea get rid of the system all together. State will save money & time.
I survive in illinois. We have to secure a foid card [firearm owners identification card] to own a gun, and a ccw [concealed carry permit] to carry. The current wait period, notwithstanding the statutory requirement of acting on an application in 30 days, for these to be processed is: foid – 121 days; ccw – 145 days. I guess to evaluate illinois we have moderate infringement, but in detroit it is complete infringement.