Changes made to concealed handgun permit process in Mecklenburg County

CHARLOTTE — The pace which concealed carry permits have been issued in Mecklenburg County has been the subject of a court fight for years.

“Sheriff (Garry) McFadden always has a reason for obstructing concealed carry permits,” said Paul Valone, who is with Grass Roots North Carolina, a group suing McFadden.

The sheriff announced Tuesday several changes to the process of getting a concealed carry handgun permit.

The two most significant are people must now apply in person for permits and all applications will not automatically be sent to the VA for a mental health check.

“What he did after the first time we sued him, is to send all mental health records requests for all applicants to the Veterans Administration, even if they never served in the military in order to overwhelm the VA and delay permits by a year or more,” Valone said.

Part of the sheriff’s statement disputes that.

“The process of sending mental health releases to the VA has been in place for years, even before Sheriff Garry McFadden was elected in 2018,” it read.

Grass Roots also doesn’t like the idea of applicants applying in person.

“Our point to Sheriff McFadden is to stop all points of obstruction of concealed handgun permits,” Valone said.

The sheriff said applying in person would speed the process up.

The sheriff’s office found that many were not completing the paperwork properly, which caused delays in processing.

The sheriff said staff will help to walk applicants through the paperwork process and that should help eliminate a lot of the back and forth by getting it right the first time.

VIDEO: Sheriff McFadden responds to lawsuit over waiting times for concealed handgun permits

Sheriff McFadden responds to lawsuit over waiting times for concealed handgun permits

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