Six months ago, Santa Fe resident Bob Clark invested significant time and money, over 15 hours and $400, to obtain his license to carry a concealed weapon in New Mexico. However, a recent audit by the state’s Department of Public Safety (DPS) revealed that the credentials of his instructors and others were expired, leading to the suspension of over 730 licenses.
The DPS has found that 27 concealed carry instructors had failed to renew their credentials, prompting an immediate suspension of their permits. As a result, those taught by these instructors, including Clark, have been instructed to retake their training courses. While the courses will be offered without tuition costs, participants will still need to cover ammunition and range fees.
Expressing his frustration, Clark argued that the responsibility unfairly falls on the students who complied with all requirements. “The only people who didn’t screw up were us, the students who paid the money,” Clark told the Journal. “We’re the only ones who didn’t do something wrong, yet they’re putting the burden on us to correct it.”
DPS has issued a 90-day deadline for affected licensees to complete a new training course and submit a new certificate of completion to maintain their licenses. Failure to meet this requirement will lead to the suspension of their licenses, although they will have the opportunity to reapply later.
DPS spokesman Herman Lovato explained that the oversight was discovered during a routine audit. {DPS cannot advise students to carry concealed weapons without meeting the requirements established in law,” Lovato stated, addressing the legality of the previously issued licenses.
This issue has also prompted Clark to question the reliability of DPS’s system for verifying instructor compliance, which he believes should ensure that instructors listed as certified on the DPS website are actually qualified. His concerns were underscored by the fact that he had initially verified his instructor’s credentials through the state website.
Additionally, Lovato noted that the audit was triggered when an employee noticed that an instructor had not renewed their license. DPS is now implementing a new protocol to notify instructors 30 days before their permits expire to prevent similar issues in the future.
Clark has voiced his dissatisfaction with the need to repeat the training, emphasizing the inconvenience and additional costs imposed on students due to the department’s oversight. His experience has led him to call for an investigation to ensure such errors are not repeated, highlighting the potential implications for public safety and civil rights.
My question is why do we need to take a class for concealed carry? Heck the police in NM do not fully understand the laws. I have met some of the NM CHL instructors they seam to think they are all knowing and fail to understand many of us have carried weapons most of our own careers. The CHL requirements should be for people to do a background check, the state issues a CHL law book/pamphlet and give the citizen a license. The state is forcing us to take training we do not need, and paying large sums of money to folks that many really do not know what they are doing. Our constitutions state or federal do not require us to take a class. So why are we?
You just pointed out how the State of NM has exceeded Federal requirements… What that means is: The State of New Mexico can exceed Federal authority and “wha lah dee dah” no one cares to do anything to upend the power grab by the State of New Mexico.
So…
The State of NM will successfully argue in the STATE of NM COURTS, (If you bring a suit to them) what rights the Feds didn’t point out are up to the STATES to derive (Deprive- laws always Deprive a person…not add to a right…but to deprive that right) and the State chose to expand on what the Feds did not.
NM is a poor State, poor resources, the citizens do not have the time and money to overrule the State because the State has unlimited resources and attorneys to bury you in the court system and if you do get a ruling it will be 5 years from now and then you’ll have to go to the 10th Circuit in Denver, and then the USSC to get that ruling overturned and that is IF IF IF the USSC will agree to hear your case. $2.3 million dollars later… your broke, the USSC refuses to hear your case… and that is it.
Most of the time. You have to be a victim. You have to show harm, done to you, specifically in order to further a case against the gooberment of NM.
Nothing is simple anymore. Designed and engineered to be obstructive without immediate results…intentionally frustrating for the common person… So the quiet majority sits quiet hoping the gooberment misses them in the mix and leaves them alone.
What does that mean? You have to be jailed and deprived of a right. You gotta get shot by the police (aka gooberment or a person acting on behalf of the gooberment) carrying a concealed fireman while doing nothing other than carrying a concealed firearm. You got to prove gross negligence or malicious prosecution that HARMED YOU.
I don’t desire to get shot or shot at anymore. I do not desire to be jailed with all the maggots I put there for 20 to life either. We will not be great bed partners, because then I’ll be doing life without parole after our little nighttime encounter when they commit suicide in a double cell 8 x 10 room with only 2 occupants.
My point? Laws change when citizens have had enough and vote the far left liberal unicorn rainbow Democrat political party out of NM.
It takes days to enact a new law… It takes YEARS to get rid of bad laws.
I agree. Why do we need to take a class? Most of us are responsible.
Yep… I can think of one issue.
Vicarious Liability.
Say… if you take a class, by a so called expert… and you end up having to shoot a maggot trying to steal or harm you… You get to blame the expert in court.
That’s how it works in the far left liberal unicorn rainbow democratic political party controlled State we reside in.
All citizens ARE RESPONSIBLE in my opinion…until the far left liberal unicorn rainbow democrat political party court ruled system turns the citizen into a criminal.
I think the USMC was enough training to qualify me for carrying any weapon. Constitutional Carry is the only way to go.
Paul,
Me too, Semper Fi. To tell you the truth, the gun handling skills of some in my CCW class was a little scary. Need to stress the personal responsibility to train, if needed.
Semper Fi to you and Dustin. When the SHTF we best all be ready to take back our Republic. By the way, I offer to train friends who have never had a weapon.
Simper Fi Oorah not everyone in New Mexico has the time and money to take a CCW class and some instructors for those classes charge too much and I don’t want to travel far just to take a class
They make it costly and difficult because they do not want certain people to be able to carry concealed or for that matter to have a gun at all. what do the States and mostly cities that have the toughest gun restrictions have in common?
I am surprised that MLG and her progressive cabal have not introduced legislation to do away with concealed carry.
She did… in Albuquerque public areas…Just this year…Where you been?
Murdock v. Pennsylvania :: 319 U.S. 105 (1943)
As a former police officer in NM, albeit only for 30 of 38 years… and up to the position of a NM Chief of Police, I strongly object to a citizen having to pay any fee whatsoever to carry openly or concealed a firearm.
Period.
In all those years not one time did I fear an armed citizen.
Period.
I refuse to apply for a concealed carry permit. Why? It is free for me… NOT FOR THEE.
I don’t give a rats a** if I’ve have decades of firearms training… a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT IS A CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT AND NO FEE SHOULD BE ASSESSED TO UPHOLD OR DEMONSTRATE YOUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT.
Period.
When citizens continue to bow and pay fees in order to comply with a CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT… they submit to the fear the gooberment has imposed upon them.
Ignorance begets ignorance.
I like what you said Clare !
And Thank You for your service!!
Agree 100%. Never go anywhere unarmed; Screw the unconstitutional permitting.
You are exactly right. Thank you for your service and regard for the Constitution.
Constitution Carry would resolve this…… burden should NOT fall on the citizens
Exactly.
Land of Enchant…Infringement
This all started in the swamp under obama. Please read EMILY GETS HER GUN by Emily Miller. This is all spelled out in 2013.
It sounds to me that a civil case is appropriate when someone misrepresents themselves as an instructor, takes your money and is unable to deliver.
As far as the concealed carry laws in NM are concerned its as if a 3rd grader were allowed input. For example, if you qualify with a 9mm and then purchase a 40cal you have to retest. If you purchased a revolver you could not conceal carry the weapon unless you retest. Additionally there is a 2yr refresher requirement that is absolutely unnecessary. This is a lot of additional cost and unnecessary oversight that could be mitigated with “any handheld weapon larger than 22 cal up and including 45cal.” And the final example, you cannot carry two weapons for which i do not do but am perplexed as to why this is needs to be controlled.
It would seem to me that its in NM best interest to make LEGAL concealed carry as practical and cost effective for both the applicant and the state.
Not sure about that unless I was told differently
You are right about the calibers and why most instructors have you qualify with a 45, both semi and revolver so you can carry anything below without the need for a retest.
The gun owners who took the courses shouldn’t be stripped of their RIGHT as they willfully took and paid for a course! This sounds more like another sneaky attack by the Loserjan regime!
As a current New Mexico/California peace officer with 50 years combined service, I am in total support of Constitutional Carry. As an open carry state (with no “permission” required) I fail to see how putting a shirt over your weapon or carrying one in a purse suddenly makes these requirements necessary. I testified in committee in 2017 the first time that ConCarry, at my request by one of our Senators, was introduced. It was promptly slapped down by the Democrats and my fidelity to my Oath was even questioned by members of Everytown for Gun Safety. 28 states have enacted ConCarry and life has been made much easier for the good folks in those states. Let us introduce it in the Legislature every year until it passes under, hopefully, a sane Governor.
You are correct! You can walk down the street with a weapon on your hip, but if it starts to rain or gets a little chilly and you put a jacket on, you are a criminal. No doubt those who wrote this law believe that they wrote a good law for 2nd Amend. supporters and are very proud of themselves. Then you have the anti gun business people who will not allow you to carry in any form, like Sam’s Club.
We usually don’t have concealed carry classes within 100 miles of where we live. Lots of ranches, etc out here, not a lot of super big towns. So we would have the additional expenses of getting a hotel room for the duration of a 3 day class. Stupid if you ask me. Having gone to the police academy back on the East Coast should be an automatic qualification.
Wake Up New Mexico Vote Red ! Or expect more of the same, Stop the Insanity.
Seems the NRA are a bunch of crickets !