CCW Permits Surge During Sheriff Bianco Terms

Bianco Says He is Filling Demand for CCW Permits

RIVERSIDE — The number of CCW permits issued in Riverside County has skyrocketed since Sheriff Chad Bianco was elected in 2018. He’s simply giving the people what they want, Bianco said.

Through the end of 2018, 3,400 concealed carry permits had been issued, according to Bianco. Today, more than 60,000 permits have been issued since Bianco took office in 2019.

“There has always been a demand for concealed carry permits in Riverside County,” Bianco told Uken Report. “I’m the first Sheriff willing to allow the process to proceed without intentional roadblocks.  I didn’t make it easier; I simply made it possible.”

Effective April 8, 2019, the Concealed Carry Weapon’s (CCW) Unit returned to the Ben Clark Training Center, 16791 Davis Avenue, in Riverside, where it once was housed.

This move, according to Bianco’s office, allows free parking for CCW applicants and a larger office space to process applications, conduct background checks, and issue identification cards to those that are approved to carry a concealed firearm.

The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department also partnered with Permitium to develop a paperless CCW application process. This CCW program allows applicants to apply for a CCW online, upload the required documents, and pay by debit or credit card for a nominal convenience fee. This program also allows applicants to schedule an appointment with the CCW Unit and receive text and/or email reminders. The link for the CCW application can be found by clicking here, then clicking on the “Concealed Weapon Permit” tab at the bottom of the home page.

“I know this will be taken the wrong way by some but all of us enjoy the God-given right to self-protection,” Bianco told Uken Report. “In a society where carjacking, robberies and follow home robberies, are becoming more and more common, everyone should have the ability to defend themselves and those around them.  The fact of the matter is that law-abiding residents do not commit crime.  Our current gun laws restricting the second amendment do absolutely nothing to keep people safe.  There is something painfully obvious in the statement, “the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun, is for a good guy to have a gun.”

Law enforcement is always several minutes or more away during a deadly encounter, Bianco added. “We must be able to protect ourselves in this situation.”