South Carolina became the 29th state to allow Concealed Carrying of Weapons (CCW) without a permit. It overwhelmingly passed both the state House and Senate and was enthusiastically signed into law by Gov. Henry McMaster (R).
With my signature, South Carolina is now the 29th state in the country with constitutional carry. This bill expands the Second Amendment rights of our law-abiding citizens and will keep violent criminals behind bars with increased penalties for illegal gun use and possession. pic.twitter.com/gHq9QKf8TP
— Gov. Henry McMaster (@henrymcmaster) March 7, 2024
Since President Biden took office, 13 states have passed permitless CCW legislation, also known as “constitutional carry” laws. The South Carolina law comes on the heels of the Louisiana measure passed just days ago.
The new legislation still restricts carry in several areas such as schools, courthouses, and polling places.
One unique aspect about the South Carolina CCW law is that it allows 18-year-olds to carry. The minimum age is 21 in most other states. Many feel that if 18-year-olds can vote, serve in the military and be held accountable as an adult for crimes — the Second Amendment should also apply to them as adults.
Additionally, the new law allows citizens to still obtain a permit if they wish. Other constitutional carry states do this for two reasons. First, some states allow non-residents to carry only if they possess a permit from their home state. Second, the Federal Gun Free School Zones Act prohibits carry within 300 yards of a school except if they possess a state-issued permit.
One angle that has received news coverage in South Carolina is self-defense for women. Robin Evans runs a women’s firearms training school called “Chicks with Triggers.” She told Fox News Digital, “Criminals don’t wait for permission to arm themselves illegally, and neither should the courageous women I stand with. We demand the right to self-defense without barriers.”
In 1987 the current wave of concealed carry laws began in Florida, which established a CCW permit system requiring background checks and training. When the “wild west” predictions of anti-gun extremists proved unfounded — they had mockingly labeled Florida as “The Gunshine State” — the trend spread to other states. Economist John R. Lott Jr. wrote a book called “More Guns, Less Crime” which collected hard data from numerous states to prove CCW laws did not turn ordinary citizens into trigger-happy killers. Permit holders were proved to be law law-abiding and responsible citizens while violent crime dropped everywhere CCW was established.
This sparked the next wave of CCW, that being the current trend toward constitutional carry. Permitless carry was initially called “Vermont Carry” by proponents because this tiny state was initially the only one not requiring a permit for CCW. Alaska became the second such state in 2003, and since then the trend has been commonly called by its current moniker of “constitutional carry.”
In the first year since Ohio passed its constitutional carry law, crime dropped in most major cities.
