Albemarle County may eliminate its current requirement for a national background check to receive a concealed weapons permit because of concerns with the system.
Albemarle County Sheriff Edgar Robb said current regulations "exceed the requirements of state law."
Robb said the national background check takes six weeks, thereby adding a substantial delay for citizens seeking a concealed weapons permit. He therefore asked the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to amend County Code 2-502.
County Code 2-502 requires all applicants for such permits to give personal information as well as fingerprints, which would then be forwarded through the Central Criminal Records Exchange of the State Police.
The information is then sent to the FBI to determine whether or not the applicant has a criminal record in any state other than Virginia. If an applicant meets all the requirements of the check, a permit is issued within 45 days.
Albemarle County adopted these requirements in 1997 at the request of the county sheriff. Yet, the sheriff office now is requesting an appeal on the basis that the national records check rarely reveals any unknown criminal history, and the price of the process surpasses its value.
Albemarle County Board of Supervisors member Walter Perkins said the sheriff informed the Board of these problems and they now are considering amending the ordinance after the sheriff requested they put the changes on the agenda.
The amendment would remove the national records check from the procedure.
Perkins said the county supervisors are likely to pass the amendment.
This change would not violate any state law, as the Commonwealth does not require applicants for concealed weapons permits to undergo a national criminal records check. Virginia code 18.2-308 only requires that county law enforcement authorities be consulted and receive a report from the Central Criminal Records Exchange. This exchange is not based on fingerprints, but on personal information alone, and it can be accessed almost immediately. The national check uses fingerprints and can reveal applicants who are using false identities or have a criminal record in another state.
Presently the applicant is charged the maximum fee of $50 for their application with $35 going to the local law enforcement fee, $5 to the state and $10 is a clerk of court fee. The national check costs $24.
Given recent terrorism, some are concerned that it might not be best to relax requirements for concealed weapons.
"Everyone is concerned about potential threats, and we will have to look at the whole issue to decide what to do," said Lindsay Dorrier Jr., Albemarle County Board of Supervisors member.
Neither Dorrier nor Perkins could recall any event where a permit had been denied through a national check.
A public hearing on the ordinance has been set for April 17.
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