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conceal carry in SC

docgene

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2012
Messages
1
Location
Minnesota
This is totally confusing. One can get concealed carry permit in South Carolina but at the same time it is unlawful to carry concealed handgun with or without permit.
I am about to move to South Carolina and trying to figure out laws there.
 
H

Herr Heckler Koch

Guest
Can the OP carry a gun, concealed or otherwise, in a prohibited place where he is moving from? If that is what the OP meant, there is nothing confusing about it. I'll hang tight and wait for further info from him/her.
That beggars the meaning of prohibited in any state - including the state of confusion.
 

ehidle

New member
Joined
May 8, 2012
Messages
1
Location
Seneca SC
You can carry a concealed firearm in SOME places in South Carolina, if and only if you possess a valid CWP from SLED.

However, there is a HUGE list of places that you can't carry a firearm, even with a CWP. Some of those places include:

Any school, or property owned by an educational institution, at any educational or vocational level
Any establishment that is LICENSED to serve alcohol (regardless of whether they happen to be serving alcohol at the time you find yourself there)
Any government building, or property owned by a government entity (courts, police departments, detention facilities, etc)
Any place conducting a poll for public office
Any place where there is being conducted a meeting of public officials
Any place where child care is being performed
Any place where medical services are offered or rendered
Any place where religious worship is taking place

This is probably not an all-inclusive list.

The moral of the story is that, while concealed carry is technically legal in some circumstances with a CWP, for all practical purposes, carrying a firearm is illegal in SC, with or without a CWP, as you can't possibly conduct your day to day business without finding yourself in a location where carry is prohibited.
 
H

Herr Heckler Koch

Guest
The moral of the story is that, while concealed carry is technically legal in some circumstances with a CWP, for all practical purposes, carrying a firearm is illegal in SC, with or without a CWP, as you can't possibly conduct your day to day business without finding yourself in a location where carry is prohibited.
Absolutely not true! I carried legally from 1996 until I left South Carolina to you Yankees in 2006.
 

John Canuck

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2011
Messages
275
Location
Upstate SC
You can carry a concealed firearm in SOME places in South Carolina, if and only if you possess a valid CWP from SLED.

However, there is a HUGE list of places that you can't carry a firearm, even with a CWP. Some of those places include:

Any school, or property owned by an educational institution, at any educational or vocational level
Any establishment that is LICENSED to serve alcohol (regardless of whether they happen to be serving alcohol at the time you find yourself there)
Any government building, or property owned by a government entity (courts, police departments, detention facilities, etc)
Any place conducting a poll for public office
Any place where there is being conducted a meeting of public officials
Any place where child care is being performed
Any place where medical services are offered or rendered
Any place where religious worship is taking place

This is probably not an all-inclusive list.

The moral of the story is that, while concealed carry is technically legal in some circumstances with a CWP, for all practical purposes, carrying a firearm is illegal in SC, with or without a CWP, as you can't possibly conduct your day to day business without finding yourself in a location where carry is prohibited.

I carry daily, and with the exception of a periodic visit to a restaurant that has an ABC license, I am never at risk of being in a place that is prohibited. I even open carry on my own property :uhoh:

The odd visit to the doctor, or a polling place is an inconvenience. If we had a lobby effort to fix these issues, we might be going somewhere. Sorry, but the carrying of a firearm is not practically illegal. Have you joined us for breakfast here in the upstate yet?
 
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armaborealis

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2011
Messages
56
Location
Alaska
Compared to some other states, SC is awfully restrictive even to permit holders so I see where ehidle is coming from. I guess it depends on your weekly routine and how often you must enter Victim Disarmament Zones.

The other issue with SC is that the penalties for entering the more common Victim Disarmament Zones (restaurants, public buildings like, say, a restroom) tend to carry possible terms longer than 2 years. That makes you a prohibited person under federal law if convicted which is pretty serious. Some other states treat such procedural, non-violent, non-harmful acts which lack mens rea (criminal intent) more reasonably.

I've actually modified my routine to some degree to avoid the numerous victim disarmament zones down here. And open carry -- forget about it!

SC also absolutely fails the "battered victim whose ex gets out of the slammer next week" test. If you need protection in a hurry you have no options. SLED will take >90 days to process your CWP application and that's after you jump through arbitrary and silly hoops to "earn" one. There's no provision for faster issuance to those who are facing an imminent, tangible threat. SC won't honor a non-resident permit so you can't get one from a state which acts quicker. SC also won't issue non-resident permits to folks who may happen to reside in the state but don't own property (for example, people who rent). Car carry options exist but are rather limited. No unlicensed open carry exists, heck, not even unloaded open carry.

I was surprised to find that SC has some of the worst gun laws outside of obvious places like Cali and the Northeast, with the exception of strong castle doctrine.
 

dadpharm

Regular Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2009
Messages
63
Location
, ,
Where did you get this info? SC issues non resident permits to persons out of state who own property here.Also any resident,as long as legal,may get a permit,even apartment renters.Simply must be a resident of the state. thanks
 

armaborealis

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2011
Messages
56
Location
Alaska
Where did you get this info? SC issues non resident permits to persons out of state who own property here.Also any resident,as long as legal,may get a permit,even apartment renters.Simply must be a resident of the state. thanks

Yeah, exactly. What about non-residents who do not own real estate in SC? They're hosed. One can think of numerous examples where this is an issue.

EXAMPLE 1: A traveling salesman from, say, Augusta, Georgia spends a significant amount of time in SC on business. They hold a Georgia Permit (resident) and a Florida Permit (non-resident). SC doesn't honor Georgia permits. SC won't honor the FL permit as the individual isn't a resident of Florida. And the individual can't get a SC permit unless they buy real estate in SC. SC also bars unlicensed open carry. Right denied.

EXAMPLE 2: A military spouse who is a resident of, say, Utah accompanies their active duty soldier to SC. Under the terms of the Military Spouse Residency Relief Act, they choose to retain Utah residency for whatever reason (maybe they or their kid are pursuing education at Brigham Young U or something). They have to move again in three years so they rent a house instead of buying. Utah's permit is not honored in SC. SC will issue the active duty family member a CWP but not the spouse. SC also bars unlicensed open carry. Right denied.

EXAMPLE 3: A poor soul from Chicago is visiting America and chooses to spend tourist dollars in SC on a vacation to Myrtle Beach. This individual has an Illinois FOID as well as Utah and Florida permits (non-resident) for use when traveling because Illinois won't issue permits. SC won't honor the Utah or FL permits, and its impossible to get a permit from Illinois. SC also bars unlicensed open carry. Right denied.

EXAMPLE 4: A college student age 20 in the National Guard goes to USC and establishes SC residency. The individual may have been allowed to OC in their home state but cannot be eligible for a SC CWP until age 21. SC bars unlicensed open carry. Right denied.

Any transient in SC who is not a domiciliary of Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming is basically denied any sort of carry rights in SC. Allowing unlicensed open carry would go a long ways towards fixing that.

As for turn around time -- it is not rare to find folks who report wait times over 90 days. The statute says SLED has 90 days to turn the packages around but that goal is not always met. Even if they did manage to meet that goal all the time, it is going to take time to take the class, get fingerprinted (probably during business hours on a work day -- so you need to take off from work), and submit the application. Sucks to be you if there's an imminent threat I guess. Unlicensed open carry would also solve the imminent threat problem.
 
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