Hoosiers Lead the Concealed Carry Pace

A report released last month by the Crime Prevention Research Center indicated that Indiana currently has the highest per capita number of residents who hold concealed carry permits, standing at 15 percent of the population. 

South Dakota was second at 14.7 percent, and a total of ten states have a per-capita concealed-carry exceeding 10 percent. 

This week, new numbers from The Hoosier State show the number of residents who hold active licenses to carry handguns has grown by nearly 50 percent since 2012–and the female CCW demographic has nearly doubled over the same period of time. 

An analysis conducted by the Indianapolis Star and published Sept. 2 indicated that in 2012, there were 92,000 concealed-carry permits issued to female Hoosiers, but by the beginning of 2016, there were more than 174,000 women with a valid carry license. 

In the first three months of 2016, more than 50,000 concealed-carry licenses were issued to Indiana residents, more than half the number issued in all 12 months of 2015, the Star reported. If Indiana continues that pace for the year, they will have issued more than double the number from the previous year. 

“Anytime there is an issue in the news where politicians are talking about limiting people’s right to bear arms, that proportionally usually results in an increase in people buying licenses to carry,” Indiana State Police Capt. Dave Bursten told the newspaper. 

Data for the analysis were provided by the Indiana State Police. 

Indiana state law does not require residents to register firearms, nor does it require any licensing for the purchase of either long arms or handguns. Residents must undergo a background check and fingerprinting to carry a concealed handgun, and a lifetime permit is available.