Concealed handgun permits increase in Washington, Greene counties
Ben Romanoff, general manager at ACE Sporting Goods, holds one of the store’s best-selling handguns, a Smith & Wesson Shield semi-automatic pistol.
Ben Romanoff, general manager at ACE Sporting Goods Inc., holds one of their best-selling handguns, a Smith & Wesson Shield semiautomatic pistol.
Concerns about home invasions and personal safety appear to have led to an increase in the number of concealed carry permits issued in Washington and Greene counties last year.
Mark Pochron, who owns the True Value hardware store in Dry Tavern and has sold guns for the past 35 years, began noticing an increase in gun sales last spring, including many for first-time buyers.
The heroin epidemic that has led to burglaries and home invasions in both counties has spooked many property owners, Pochron said, prompting them to search for ways to protect themselves.
“There’s absolutely a fear of home invasions and personal safety. They’re primarily concerned about protecting themselves,” Pochron said last week while attending a gun distributors’ show in South Carolina. “That was really remarkable, the uptick. We see many people who fear for their safety.”
Many of his sales have been to parents of young children who want to protect their homes.
“They’re just thirsting for information,” Pochron said of the first-time gun owners.
December was an especially busy month for sheriffs in both counties as they processed large numbers of permits in recent weeks, easily surpassing their 2014 numbers. It was not known if concerns about President Obama’s recent executive order to mandate background checks for all gun shows, along with tensions over last month’s attack in San Bernardino, Calif., in which a husband and wife killed 14 people, led to the surge.
“Last week, the line was out the door,” Washington County Sheriff Sam Romano said Wednesday. “It was something. A lot of people were getting handguns for their Christmas gifts.”
The number of licenses issued to carry a concealed firearm in Washington County increased by more than 500 in 2015 over 2014, according to the sheriff’s office. Sgt. Don Jones said the number of permits issued in 2015 was about 6,200, not including the final week of December, for which the department had yet to calculate.
In Greene County, the sheriff’s office processed 1,338 concealed carry permits in 2015, a 35 percent increase over the previous year.
Of that figure, 317 licenses were issued in December alone, which represents nearly 24 percent of all permits approved during the year, according to sheriff’s office statistics. The office processed just 73 permits the previous December.
“Based on conversations I’ve had with people, they’re concerned about what’s going on in our nation,” Greene County Sheriff Brian Tennant said.
Ben Romanoff, 35, general manager of Ace Sporting Goods in South Strabane Township, said gun sales continue to be brisk after the holiday season.
“We had one of the best Christmas seasons ever,” Romanoff said.
Romanoff said customers are looking for small, compact guns that are easy to conceal unlike a few years ago, in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, when assault rifles were in demand.
“People (today) are more concerned about self-defense,” Romanoff said. “More people are definitely thinking they need to take (self-defense) on themselves and not rely on someone else to protect them and their families.”
The Smith & Wesson Shield and Bodyguard, that each cost about $400, are two of the most popular handguns the store has been selling, Romanoff said.
“We have had a lot of first-time owners – people who thought they would never buy a handgun,” Romanoff said. “They fear they will lose the right to bear arms.”
Zach George, 27, of Bellevue, who last week bought a Glock pistol at Ace, said he wanted the firearm for “home defense.” George said he is not overly concerned for his personal safety, but he plans to carry the Glock.
“Everyone is interested in having them,” George said.
It is still too early to tell the effects of the president’s executive action to expand background checks for gun shows, although Pochron doubts it will affect his business.
Instead, he thinks it will be problematic for families that want to pass along heirloom rifles and shotguns to younger generations, who would now be required to undergo a check. He said Pennsylvania already requires relatives to go through the checks to transfer handguns.
He expects sales at his store and surrounding areas to remain brisk in 2016.
“The way current events are today …” Pochron said. “These are real concerns for people.”