No, I am not making this up: Fox 5’s chief investigative reporter Emily Miller was provisionally approved for a license to carry a concealed firearm within the District of Columbia. Miller is apparently the fifteenth such person to apply for and receive a license after following the byzantine process to become licensed to pack heat in our nation’s capital. She will now need to complete a District-approved training course . . .
within the next 45 days to complete the process. Ms. Miller explains that her approval apparently hinged on the fact that she had received documented threats that had been reported previously to law enforcement (in contrast to journalist Steve Gutowski):
I was shocked to hear that I am the 15th person the police chief approved for a carry permit.
Why me?
The approval letter made the reason clear. I was approved based on two different threats against me, which I had documented with police reports. These are my “special dangers.”
The letter said that the police did not accept into consideration the terrorist threat against journalists because it is considered “general in nature.”
I have only received preliminary approval. To get the permit, I have to take 18 hours of classes with an instructor certified by the police within 45 days. I’m taking the class, but my decision whether or not to carry a gun in public is a personal one and will remain private.
I’d like to congratulate Ms. Miller and wish her well as she goes forward with the ability to legally exercise a right that only fourteen other regular citizens can, people who don’t enjoy a special exemption for association with the military, civilian law enforcement, or other group especially favored by politicians. Good for her. Someday I hope the rest of us will be able to exercise our rights without such restrictions throughout the land of the free.
Stay safe out there, Ms. Miller.