Parents Can’t Adopt A Child Because They Have Legal Concealed Carry Licenses

By Charles Barr

Nevada Child Services denied the request of adaption to a couple and expressed, “a concern about the ability of a child to gain access to a loaded weapon.”

The couple, Brian and Valerie Wilson, has been together for 24 years. Early on in their marriage, they decided that they would adopt a child when they both felt the time was right.

Because of a concealed carry permit that both individuals have, they were denied the ability to adapt a child.

“I am really heartbroken that the Department of Child and Family Services gave us this denial letter. I really want a family,” Valerie Wilson said.

Local and national media pointed out that numerous children in Nevada and around the country are in the foster care system and in need of a loving family. Despite this, Nevada still remains steadfast against the idea of allowing foster parents to have concealed carry permits.

Nevada Assembly Bill 167 aimed to change this by allowing parents and police officers to carry loaded handguns in person or in a car and still be eligible to be foster parents.

Essentially, this bill is countering the current practice of allowing the state government to prevent capable parents from adopting and nurturing children that are in need of positive influence in their life. Is this really an issue of firearms getting in the hands of children, or is this a politically driven issue?

It’s unfortunate that the process of raising a family has evolved into political theater, especially for the Wilsons who have no records and, for all intents and purposes, are two people who are fit for being foster parents.

I think the solution to this is simple: get government out of our business. If you have a gun, you should be able to raise children, adopted or not. The concern that children would get a hold of the weapon is a reality that happens to few families. My suggestion to families who have both guns and children is to keep the guns safely away from the children. The government should not need to do that for you.

Assemblywoman Michele Fiore, R-Las Vegas sponsored the bill. “I don’t know if some of my peers have toured Child Haven or have been in Child Haven, but we have children in need of great foster care, and we have had people who are law-abiding citizens that have gotten their background checks, that have their CCWs, literally denied to foster a child because they have a concealed-weapons permit,” she said.

While the Assembly took no immediate action on the bill, the outcome remains in question.

[divider]About the Author:[/divider]

An aspiring filmmaker with a passion for liberty-minded politics, Charles Barr resides in Monmouth County, New Jersey and attends Montclair State University with the intention of graduating in 2017 with a double major in filmmaking and political science and a minor in communications. Charles has volunteered for various campaigns including: Ron Paul for President 2012, Stephanie Ziemba for State Assembly, Steve Lonegan for US Senate, Ken Kaplan for Governor, Brian Goldberg for US Senate, and Dorit Goikhman for US Congress. In addition to politics, Charles was the assistant director for the feature length film, My Brother’s Girlfriend that premiered in early 2015 and has helped with the production of various shorts. Currently, Charles serves as the Associate Director for the Empowerment PAC, the Assistant Chair of Herrera PAC, and is writing a web-series based on the dangers of prescription painkillers.

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