Future handgun owner/carry permit in WA

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NoLibs

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Hey there.
My dad is the one planning on getting some kind of handgun and his conceled weapons permit in the near future and I like the idea for myself too.
I haven't checked out the application process yet but any knowledge or experiences from other Washington State residents would be great.

I don't have extensive experience with handguns so I figure plenty of quality time at the range would be a good plan beforehand.
I'm thinking something in a 9mm should suit our needs, but I'm open to suggestions and advice
Thanks in advance.
Oliver
 
Check out www.packing.org for details on WA state law regarding concealed carry. Permit application process is very easy and is shall-issue, so you are certain to get your permit provided you aren't a felon, etc.

Also try Yahoo group "wa-ccw" for info on concealed carry in WA.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wa-ccw/

-Pytron

Edited to add:
Also check out the Firearms Academy of Seattle (http://www.firearmsacademy.com/) they have excellent classes and even a free handgun seminar (you must have a handgun already). Located near Chehalis, it's a drive from Seattle, but it might be closer to you?
 
Great thanks. I'm in Vancouver (Near Portland) so I'll deff have to check it out.
I'm planning to transfer to EWU in January and I'm pretty sure they won't allow any firearms in dorms...I guess it's gonna be apt. hunting for me 'cause there's now way I'm sharing walls with God-knows-who without means to fend off break-ins.
 
application process for WA is easy. go to your local Sheriff's office, fill out applciation, pay fee, get fingerprinted, permit arrives in mail shortly thereafter. thats it. provide you meet all of the qualifications. no felony convictions, arrest warrants, or involuntary cimmitment to a mental institution. for a liberal state, WA actually has some decent gun laws. aside from no machine guns, SBR's or supressors. we gotta work on that. ah who am i kidding? that'll never fly.

Bobby
 
There is no permit necessary to OWN handguns in WA state. You can quite legally go to a gun store and purchase a pistol today, you will have a 5 day wait though which is waived with a "Concealed Handgun License".

The process for getting a permit is quick and relatively painless. Generally you go to whoever is the sherrif for your county (i recomend calling ahead because some of them have specific hours/days for this sort of thing). If you live in King county your gonna want to go to the King Country Courthouse during normal buisiness hours. It takes about 5 minutes to fill out the form and a bit longer to get your fingerprints taken. Then eventually your shiny new permit arrives in the mail.
 
I actually just got my cpl here in Washington. It took about 1.5 hours, and that's only because we kept messing up the prints... They take 2 sets, and we kept getting our right and left confused. It was pretty fun. The form you have to fill out was 1 small page. Simple.

I applied for it at my local police station. They didn't even search me when we went back into the 'secure' area, and I was carrying my tactical folder. Just before I want in I reminded them and handed it over. I dunno if they weren't worried about it since I was a CC applicant, or if it's just because it's a small town. Anyway, liscense got here in 29 days on the nose. The people at the station were friendly and professional, which is odd because in my dealings with the police in this town, they have never been friendly or professional. haha. I actually miss the police in my home town. Oh well though.

You can't carry or posess on a college campus... you should definatly read packing.org. Very informative.
 
Yeah, the application process is really quite painless. I did it at the courthouse in downtown Seattle and the most exciting part was getting stopped by security for having a leatherman in my bag. :D They made me check it with the deputy. After that, filled out the form, paid my $60 and had fingerprints taken. A few weeks later the permit arrived in the mail.
 
Yeah I remember that day Chupa. Hehe, sucker. We went in on the same day so I know how easy it was. In fact, it wasn't even a few weeks for us to get our permits in the mail but more like 10 days.

Oh and another link to add to your list: the Revised Code of Washington section 9.41 . If you are ever unsure of something on packing.org you can always go to the source.
 
The real nice thing about the WA state permit is how few places are restricted for carry. And even if you were to do something REAL stupid and get caught in a no-no place, having a permit turns what WOULD have been a felony into a misdemenor. I won't make a value judegement on the wisdom of choosing to carry in an offlimits place, its the getting caught that counts in my mind, remember concealed=concealed. As long as you keep yourself reasonable this can be a great state to be a gun owner in.
 
I had an easier time getting my out of state license in WA than my resident in OR.

The process in WA is straight forward and less time consuming than in OR. I had my permit in about 1/4 the time.

DM
 
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