Mainers no longer need permit to carry concealed handgun

UPDATED 8:07 PM EDT Oct 15, 2015

AUGUSTA, Maine —Legal gun owners in Maine no longer need a permit to carry a concealed handgun. The new rules take effect Thursday. Legislators said the law ends a mandatory permit system that had been in effect for more than 90 years.

The law applies to people who are 21 or older or military members age 18 or older. Prohibitions on where firearms can be carried  remain.  That means no one can bring a gun to places including courthouses, state parks, schools, federal buildings and on private property when prohibited by the property owner.

The law change sparked criticism from gun control advocates and remains controversial.  Weapons trainer Uel Gardner of Weaponcraft in Saco said one thing stays the same.

“There’s a huge responsibility that comes with carrying a gun, so if you're going to carry a gun, you need to know how to use it,” Gardner said. “If you're going to carry the gun, you need to be proficient and not just carry it because you can.” Gardner said people should still take safety classes, even if they aren’t required to carry.  “You're defending your life and you had to stop a threat using a firearm, you're also responsible for any round that misses and goes somewhere else,” he said. Gardner said the number of people taking his classes has not changed, but he’s noticed a new trend. “We’re finding more people are taking classes at a higher level ,” he said.

Uel said he expects to see more gun carriers under the new law, but he said many are already current gun owners.

전국적으로 총기규제의 움직임이 있는 것과는 반대로 메인주에서는 면허가 없어도 합법적으로 총을 살 수 있는 사람은 누구나 concealed carry를 할 수 있는 새법이 발효됐다. 몇군데 법적으로 무기휴대가 금지되었거나,  건물이나 토지의 주인이 총소지를 금지하는 장소는 예외다.