Retired judge wins county gun licensing dispute

Associated Press

EUGENE, Ore. - A judge has ruled that Lane County officials were wrong in denying a retired judge a concealed handgun license.

Lane County Circuit Judge Mustafa Kasubhai issued an order in favor of 72-year-old James Hargreaves Tuesday, reported The Register-Guard.

Hargreaves, in a petition to the court, said t he proved his competence with handheld firearms when he told Sheriff Byron Trapp in June he had held a concealed handgun license in the 1970s and 1980s.

Trapp, after consulting with County Counsel Steve Dingle, denied Hargreaves' license application, saying the former judge needed other evidence proving he's experienced with handguns.

Oregon law said there are several ways an applicant can show he is a competent handgun user, including completion of a training course that covers handgun safety and proof that the applicant is "licensed or has been licensed to carry a firearm in this state, unless the license has been revoked."

Kasubhai said that Hargreaves had the law on his side.

"At the end of the day, the plain meaning of the statute places no limitations on when the license had been obtained in order to demonstrate competency," Kasubhai wrote in the order.

Trapp said after having the judge's guidance, he is ready to provide Hargreaves with a concealed gun license.

"I am glad to issue it," Trapp said. "I just needed these questions addressed first."

Hargreaves was a Lane County judge for 18 years and retired in 1995. He now runs a consulting firm that works with courts in developing countries.