The 2nd amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America states:

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

Isn't that beautiful? 

A FREE state. Meaning in order for a State to be free the people who make up the state MUST be able to have the means to defend themselves.

We have a slew of weak politicians and charlatans that seek to infringe on the basic human right of self defense. But, we have strong citizens of our nation with an even stronger moral constitution that will uphold this right so I am confident we will overcome. 

With that being said there are still many law abiding citizens in our country that do not own a firearm let alone carry one for their protection on a daily basis. I hope to do my part to change that. 

Most civilians don't lawfully carry a firearm because they don't have any idea where to start. I hope this article an help ease those concerns and get more of our citizens carrying a legal firearm safely to protect their family and themselves.

Let us begin...

Concealed Carry Law

Your laws for being able to carry a firearm (or even a knife) will vary from state to state. I'll do my best to cover them here but be sure to do your own due diligence BEFORE deciding to carry a firearm. 

All 50 states allow for civilians to carry a legal firearm but each has their own little nuances that can make things confusing for new concealed carriers. Let's dive in...

When it comes to laws concerning concealed carry your states will fall into one of these categories:

Constitutional Carry States

My favorite. This means anyone who can legally carry a weapon may do without a permit in that state. 

Shall Issue States

These states require that you have a permit to carry a firearm, but you don't have to demonstrate "good cause" for carrying a weapon. This means that if you are legally able to carry a firearm, you should be fine, you just have to go thru the process.

May Issue States

In these states a permit is required and the local authorities will help decide if you get a permit or not. Then some states have...

No Issue Laws

This means that most U.S. Citizens cannot carry a concealed firearm (I advise you move far away from here). In California 12 counties follow this rule. And there are some other states where this is not technically a "law" but it is practiced. These states are Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York.

Reciprocity

Another important piece of concealed carry law to understand is Reciprocity. This means the acknowledgement of another states concealed carry license or permit outside of your home state. 

Not all states will consider your home state license valid so while traveling, it is important to know what the laws are for the state you are traveling into or thru. 

The table below lists each state law regarding concealed carry:

There you have it, each states general law regarding concealed carry. Please do your own research on this matter. I've found this link to be a nice handy resource handgunlaw.us

Now that you have a basic understanding of each states concealed carry laws, now it's time to dive into general Self Defense Law if you are ever forced to use your weapon to protect your life or the life of those you love.

Self Defense Law

Let's start with a working knowledge of what "Self Defense" is...

Self Defense as defined by dictionary.law.com is:

n. the use of reasonable force to protect oneself or members of the family from bodily harm from the attack of an aggressor, if the defender has reason to believe he/she/they is/are in danger. Self-defense is a common defense by a person accused of assault, battery or homicide. The force used in self-defense may be sufficient for protection from apparent harm (not just an empty verbal threat) or to halt any danger from attack, but cannot be an excuse to continue the attack or use excessive force.

This is a basic human right, a right of ALL living things. 

Of course this definition leaves some holes to be plugged. In the case of murder or battery one must prove that they were in fact responding in self defense and where not the aggressor in the situation. This can get sticky because how can a person who was not in the situation really say how another person who was being attacked felt? How far is too far? Could they have retreated? Did the person claiming self defense provoke the attack?

The general laws around self defense are the same but just as concealed carry law differs from state to state so does self defense law.

Imminent Threat

The first piece to determine is if the threat was imminent? Meaning was the person in danger at that time the damage was done. You can't claim self defense when shooting someone after they shot at you last week, that's retaliation.

Now the threat can be verbal. Which means if someone says something to you that makes you "feel" as though you are physical danger right then, that can count as an an "imminent threat" making the waters even more murky. Let's go thru a couple of examples:

Wife is arguing with her husband because she saw a text message on his phone from his "other" woman. The fight escalates and her husband says "your fat and ugly that's why I cheated". 

As hurtful as that might of been to hear and as angry as that might make the wife feel, if she shoots or stabs her husband based on that comment she is now the aggressor and the husband is in his rights to defend himself against her. She cannot claim self defense because the threat of physical harm was not imminent, just some hurtful words. 

Now let's say we got the same scenario but the wife says "I hate you, your broke, your a liar, and I hate your mother" then her husband says "b%$ch I'll kill you!" then she shoots him dead, I'd say the threat was imminent and she was well within her rights in self defense. I'm not a lawyer so don't take this as legal advice, this is just how I understand a "verbal imminent threat" and hopefully this helps you understand it. 

Also when dealing with an imminent threat when it comes to self-defense, you can only go as far as needed to end the threat! Once the their isn't anymore threat of violence, it's time to let it go.

Was it reasonable to fear for your life?

Another key consideration. 

You can be justified in your self defense claim even if the aggressor didnt' mean to actually do you harm. You just have to prove that any "reasonable person" would consider the actions of the aggressor as a threat to their life.

There is also something out there called "imperfect self defense"

What is Imperfect Self Defense?

Imperfect Self Defense is when you perceived that your life was in danger, but your reasoning was irrational. 

This doesn't absolve you of violent charges but it can lessen those charges.

Example:

Your walking into a restaurant and the person in front of you decides to hold the door to let you in, a kind gesture, but you don't see it that way. So instead of thanking the guy you shove him into the door because you perceived his movement to hold the door for you as an attack!

If that guy gets injured and decides to take you to court, you can claim self defense because you thought he was attacking you, but it won't get you off scot-free. You'll still most likely be charged because your fear was completely irrational but it could lessen your charges.

Stand Your Ground or Duty to Retreat

Some states have Stand Your Ground laws and some have Duty to Retreat laws. The main variable to consider is the use of lethal force. Many states still want you to attempt to get away from the situation if it involves lethal force. With the Stand Your Ground Law your not required to flee from the threat of violence but as I'm sure you can see, the waters start to get murky if it turns into a lethal situation. 

Your Home is Your Castle

The "Castle Doctrine" allows you to defend yourself and your family against the threat of violence with lethal force in your home. 

Any Self Defense case is going to deal with a lot of subjectivity and people who weren't there to actually know what happened. This is why it's key to have an attorney or some type of protection in place as a responsible gun owner. 

As you can see from everything I've written here when it comes to guns as a CCW there are no hard fast rules. There is a lot of subjectivity. When customers come up to my gun counter to inquire about guns they will get a bunch of different opinions, it's all based on what's right for YOU. It's your life so you have to find what works for you.