Philadelphia Concealed Carry Permit Applications Up 600 Percent

Concealed carry permit applications are up 600 percent in Philadelphia as law-abiding residents respond to violent crime by arming themselves.

Breitbart News reported that a concealed carry permit holder shot and killed an alleged robber around lunchtime Wednesday in a Philadelphia corner store.

On March 31, 2022, the NRA tweeted:

Philadelphians have responded to the Biden Crime Crisis by arming themselves. Firearm license applications are up 600% in Philly!

This gentleman is absolutely right – make sure you are never defenseless. pic.twitter.com/EARVWcKCzC

— NRA (@NRA) April 1, 2022

The Crime Prevention Research Center noted that concealed permit applications are “up 600% from recent years.”

The PhillyMag observed that Philadelphia Police have streamlined the application process:

The violent crime increase in Philadelphia has, no doubt, contributed to the surge in applications. And starting in 2021, the Philadelphia Police Department implemented a new application process. Previously, you had to complete part of the application in-person at the Gun Permit Unit on East Erie Avenue and get fingerprinted. But in January 2021, police removed the fingerprinting requirement (no other counties in Pennsylvania have one, according to Reilly) and moved the application process entirely online. Hassle free.

A Philadelphia resident told PhillyMag, “I have a pistol on me at all times. You’ve got to be crazy not to, the way things are going.”

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. Reach him at [email protected]. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.