Crime is rampant and our national security is in shambles.
We need more people that are capable and willing to defend others in society.
Amend H.R. 218 to include Active duty and retired Military Officers, Warrant Officers, Petty Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers to allow them to conceal carry nation wide.
Service members can be stationed anywhere the Department of Defense (DOD) sends them. They routinely move every few years and if they have a Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) permit in one state, the next state they are moved to may not reciprocate that permit or worse, they may not qualify for a CCW permit in the new state. Furthermore, neighborhoods and towns outside of military installations are known for having a higher rate of crime. Military Officers, Warrant Officers, Petty Officers or Non-Commissioned Officers, are leaders within the military, and whether or not the DOD has declared them law enforcement, by the rules lain out in the Uniformed Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), they meet the criteria in H.R. 218 to be law enforcement and are authorized to enforce the law within the scope of their daily duties as leaders.
Additionally, because of the moves that the service members are required to do, those same Military Officers, Warrant Officers, Petty Officers or Non-Commissioned Officers that have retired, often times have family and friends that are scattered across the entirety the United States. Just to visit those friends and family they often times must cross multiple state jurisdictions and again, the state they are traveling through or to, may not honor the CCW permit they may have.
The Manual For Courts-Martial, Part II, Chapter III, Rule 302, States that an Apprehension is the taking of a person into custody, and the discussion section states that an apprehension is the equivalent of an arrest. Rule 302, Subsection B states that Officers, Warrant Officers, Petty Officers or Non-Commissioned Officers are authorized to make apprehensions of individuals subject to trial by Court-Martial, meaning they have the ability to service members arrest for violating the law. The UCMJ also states that these individuals have the authority to apprehend.
These individuals are authorized to carry a weapon by the DOD.
The Army and Marine Corps have at least an annual weapons qualification, service members from other branches would have to complete an annual weapons qualification, but all of these individuals, active or retired, should be required to complete the Annual LEOSA Training which would includes a weapons qualification anyway.
They would be we subject to the same disciplinary requirements as anyone else under LEOSA.
These individuals are or were authorized to detect and prevent violations of the law, they all are authorized to collect sworn statements from individuals involved in crimes and have the authority to apprehend (arrest), according to the Manual for Courts-Martial and the UCMJ (Military Law).
Even though these individuals were not employed specifically as law enforcement officers, they are or were authorized to enforce military laws during their military service.
Military Retiree requirement for at least 20 years of service.
Military Retirees have non-forfeitable retirement benefits from the DOD.
These individuals must still be able to own a firearm under federal law.
Military Retirees are issued an identification card after retirement.
Our military leaders and retirees are some of the most trusted members of our government and our society, as long as all of these individuals complete the annual LEOSA training.