Judge’s order forces changes in fingerprint services for Mecklenburg gun permit seekers
Deshawn Hubert arrived at the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office mid-morning Thursday to get his fingerprints taken for a gun permit — dodging the long line that formed hours earlier.
“I expected ... a long line outside,” Hubert said.
The early rush came a day after a Superior Court judge granted a preliminary injunction to a gun rights group that required Sheriff Garry McFadden’s office to provide fingerprinting for permit seekers within five days of receiving their applications. The order was in response to a lawsuit by the group last year.
The Sheriff’s Office said it canceled around 1,300 fingerprinting appointments and made the fingerprint service first-come, first-served to comply with the judge’s order.
D.J. Windham, a screener at the Sheriff’s Office, said a line had already formed when he arrived for work at 6:40 a.m. The Sheriff’s Office doesn’t open until 8 a.m. on weekdays.
“It was busy,” he said. “They were here early.”
The lawsuit filed by gun rights organizations and three Mecklenburg County residents accused McFadden of failing to issue pistol purchase and concealed handgun permits in a timely manner, The Charlotte Observer previously reported. This is a violation of article I, Section 30 of the North Carolina Constitution, the organizations and residents argued.
Permits for concealed handguns should be issued or denied within 45 days of applying, and 14 days for pistol purchase permits, according to state law.
Applications for pistol purchase permits increased 148% from March 2020 — when the pandemic started — to February 2021, compared with the same period in 2019, the Sheriff’s Office said in March. Applications for concealed carry permits jumped 76%.
That created a backlog at the Sheriff’s Office, the Observer previously reported.
In March of this year, after more than 13,000 overtime hours, the Sheriff’s Office reported “considerable progress” in processing the applications.
As of Thursday, the Sheriff’s Office website showed it was processing purchase permit applications filed April 29-May 3, and many new concealed permit applications that were fingerprinted in October.
“Although disappointed with this new requirement to provide fingerprinting for [concealed handgun permit] applicants within five days of an application ... the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office will continue to serve our customers as best we can,” the agency said in a news release Wednesday.
Slow start for fingerprints
The lines formed early Thursday, but by 10 a.m., the Sheriff’s Office had caught up and there wasn’t much of a crowd, Windham said.
COVID-19 protocols made the line long, Windham said. Only 10 people are allowed inside at a time for fingerprint services, he said.
“It ain’t no faster waiting out there, and it ain’t no faster waiting in here,” he said. “We’re just kind of trying to keep the social distance.”
Hubert said he had an appointment at 11:24 a.m., but he arrived early after learning about Sheriff’s Office’s announcement. Once inside, Hubert was “in and out” in about 15 minutes, he said.
Wayne Baker said he moved from Washington about eight months ago. He applied for a gun permit on March 6, and his 1:15 p.m. appointment was canceled, he said. Baker said he planned to arrive early, but that meant he would’ve had to skip a job interview.
“I’m glad I didn’t come earlier,” Baker said. “I would’ve wasted my time.”
Baker said he just wants a gun for protection, especially since he’s in a new area.
Fingerprint services for gun permits
Fingerprinting services are available at the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office, 700 E. Fourth St., Ste. 120, in uptown Charlotte. The office is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The cost is $10 for every five fingerprint cards. A valid state-issued ID is required.
This story was originally published May 13, 2022 at 11:59 AM.
