Michigan county’s backlog on concealed-pistol licenses prompts lawsuit: report

close

Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for March 24

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

They’ve taken the required class for obtaining a concealed-pistol license. Now, some gun owners in Wayne County, Michigan, have a question for the county clerk.

"Why the delay?"

The license applicants say they have been waiting months for their paperwork to be processed – so a lawsuit has been filed against the clerk’s office, FOX 2 of Detroit reported.

"How can you process birth certificates, death certificates and marriage licenses, but at the same place you’re in – the clerk of the county – you can’t process a concealed-pistol license like every other county?" attorney Terry Johnson asked FOX 2.

BIDEN AIDES,' HARRIS' GUN CONTROL CALLS HAVE INCLUDED SEIZING 'ASSAULT WEAPONS'

Some applicants said they scheduled appointments for their applications – in accordance with local coronavirus restrictions – but got quicker appointments after calling again.

"I’d rather wait three months than nine," applicant Kristal Hunt said, after managing to get an earlier date.

Johnson told FOX 2 that other counties such as Oakland and Macomb have been helping gun owners at a faster rate – less than a month, in most cases – but the story has been different in Wayne County, home to Detroit.

"It’s either they don’t want to do it, they’re incompetent or they just don’t care," Johnson alleged.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

In her own defense, Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett said her office has lacked the personnel and the office space to accommodate the number of applicants, which she said has been larger than the numbers in other counties. Once the problems are addressed, the license applications will be processed more quickly, she told FOX 2.

Meantime, she told the station her office has added evening and Saturday times for March and April to help address the backlog.