Correction:

Oregon State Police released revised numbers Oct. 9 that show about one in 16 adults in Oregon is now licensed to carry a concealed weapon. The agency initially supplied The Oregonian with correct numbers for 2009-2012 and incorrect 2013 figures. This story has been revised to reflect the correct numbers.

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Kristine Hayes peered down the sights of her 9mm pistol, trying to calm and lock her muscles before shooting at the paper target dangling beneath the lights of the indoor range. Holding her breath, she squeezed the trigger so steadily and gently that she was almost surprised when her Smith & Wesson M&P 9 Pro went off.

A fresh hole appeared on the edge of the bull's-eye, and she relaxed and smiled.

"I've been shooting for about 2 1/2 years, and I feel like I'm still improving," said Hayes, 46, who manages the biology lab at Reed College. "A range like this is really convenient for me to visit after work. I'm comfortable here, and I like it."

Hayes has a lot of company. The Clackamas County Sheriff's Public Safety Training Center & Indoor Shooting Range serves as county's processing center for concealed handgun licenses and is one of the most heavily used shooting venues in the Portland area. Interest in handgun training has been so strong that the range has had a hard time keeping ammunition in stock, especially the most popular calibers, such as what Hayes uses.

"For a while, it was almost impossible to find 9mm pistol ammunition," said range manager Mike Palmer. "And when we could find it, it was really expensive."

In Oregon, about one in 16 adults is now licensed to carry a concealed handgun, up from one in 22 adults in 2010. The surge has continued this year.

The number of concealed handgun licenses issued in Oregon increased 12.9 percent during the first six months of 2013, according to Oregon State Police figures. The increase varied across the Portland area: 19.1 in Clackamas County, 11.9 percent in Washington County, 10.5 percent in Multnomah County.

The steep upswings in concealed handgun licenses follow the December shootings at Clackamas Town Center, which left two shoppers dead and one wounded, as well as the horrific massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., which took the lives of 20 children and six adults.

The high-profile incidents at once touched off a nationwide drive for stricter gun control as well as a rush to buy guns before more restrictive laws might be passed. In December, the number of FBI background checks for gun purchases through federally licensed dealers soared by 39 percent.

Although the initial surge is past, the Oregon numbers remain high, suggesting an enduring shift in attitudes and behavior. Reasons for obtaining a concealed handgun license run the gamut, but personal safety is at the top of the list.

License requirements

Oregon and Washington have similar concealed weapons laws, with one big difference: Oregon requires applicants to demonstrate knowledge of gun laws and to complete an approved handgun-safety course. Washington requires no testing or training.

Oregon

County sheriffs shall issue a license to carry a concealed handgun if an applicant:

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Is at least 21 years old.

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Is a U.S. citizen, or a legal alien who can document continuous residency in the U.S. for at least six months and has declared intent to become a citizen.

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Has no felony convictions in any state or federal court.

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Has not been convicted of a misdemeanor within past 4 years.

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Has no outstanding arrest warrants.

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Has no legal restrictions against possessing a firearm under Oregon or federal law.

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Has not been found to be mentally ill.

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Has not been dishonorably discharged from the military.

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Does not use drugs.

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Is not on any form of pretrial release.

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Is not required to register as a sex offender in any state.

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Is not named in any stalking or restraining orders.

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Submits to fingerprinting and a background check.

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Can show valid, government-issued photo identification.

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Can demonstrate competence with a handgun by completing an approved handgun-safety course.

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Pays a fee of $65 for new applications; $50 for renewals.

Washington

County sheriffs shall issue a license to carry a concealed pistol if an applicant:

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Is at least 21 years old.

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Is a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident alien with permanent resident card.

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Has no felony convictions in any state or federal court.

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Has no outstanding arrest warrants.

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Hasn't been dishonorably discharged from the military.

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Has not used illegal drugs within the past year.

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Has no court order against possessing a firearm.

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Has never been found to be mentally defective or committed to a mental institution.

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Hasn't been convicted of three violations of Washington gun laws within any 5-year period.

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Isn't named in any stalking or restraining orders.

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Has never renounced U.S. citizenship.

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Can show a valid, government-issued photo identification.

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Submits to fingerprinting and a background check.

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Pays an application fee of $52.50.

Sources: Oregon State Police, Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, Washington State Department of Licensing

"I regard carrying a defensive weapon to be cheap insurance in the category of seat belts, life jackets and bike helmets," said retired airline pilot Eric Rush, 71, of Hebo, a concealed handgun license holder for 35 years. "I try to avoid situations in which I might need to use any of those."

Robert Rubenstein, 66, of Portland, a licensed clinical social worker, said it was a matter of watching out for his own well-being.

"I have carried a concealed handgun legally in Oregon and Washington for over 20 years," Rubenstein said. "I carry it in order to take responsibility for my own safety."

Kristine Hayes said she travels a lot alone and doesn't expect police to be able to respond quickly enough. "It's a matter of not wanting to be in a situation by myself that I can't handle," Hayes said. "It gives me confidence. You know what they say, 'When seconds matter, the police are only minutes away.'"

In the Northwest, Oregon isn't alone. In Washington, which doesn't require applicants to take a gun-safety course, concealed-pistol license holders number about one in 12 adults, with more than 95,000 issued so far this year. Idaho doesn't compile statewide statistics, but a federal study last year concluded that about one 16 Idaho adults had a license.

All three states are categorized as "shall-issue" states, where state law requires authorities to issue a license unless the applicants are disqualified for criminal records, mental illness or drug use.

California, by contrast, is a "may-issue" state, where applicants must make a persuasive case before authorities will issue a license. The difference is dramatic, with about one in every 550 California adults holding concealed-carry weapons licenses.

Oregon's concealed handgun license law is the product of political compromise by the 1989 Legislature in response to a California tragedy with an Oregon connection. Then-House Speaker Vera Katz, D-Portland, sponsored a gun-control bill in the wake of a schoolyard shooting in Stockton, Calif., which left five children dead. Police soon determined the shooter's gun was purchased in Oregon.

Katz's bill increased the waiting period for handgun purchases to 15 days and added fingerprinting to the buying process, so Oregon State Police would have more time and better information for background checks. To make the package more palatable to gun-rights advocates, the bill also established a statewide system for concealed handgun permits, removing much of the local discretion by county sheriffs. The 15-day waiting period has since been replaced by instant online background checks.

Oregon law requires applicants to take a gun-safety class that also covers state gun laws. A bill to also require license applicants to pass a live-fire test stalled in the 2013 Legislature and died.

The jury is still out over whether more concealed handgun licenses make for a safer society. Crime rates have been dropping steadily at the same time the number of licenses has risen. Gun-control advocates say that's just coincidence and point to cases of license-holders who jeopardized public safety.

In Tillamook last December, a man was charged with reckless endangerment after two seventh-graders discovered a loaded 9mm semiautomatic pistol the man apparently lost in a theater. Three years ago, a Northeast Portland man was charged with disorderly conduct and discharging a firearm within Gresham city limits after using his .38-caliber revolver to shoot at a getaway car driven by two fleeing theft suspects.

Gun-rights advocates say these are rare cases that grabbed headlines. They say an overwhelming majority of license holders -- who must pass a background check -- are well-intentioned and completely law-abiding.

Scott Thomas, 54, a former Eugene police officer and firearms trainer, said he continues to carry a concealed weapon at all times, "not because I fear anyone or anything but because I know bad things happen to good people."

"I never rescinded my oath to my country or my community and consider it a duty to protect those unable to protect themselves," Thomas said.

Statistics on crimes firearms-related committed by concealed handgun license holders are not available in Oregon or Washington.

A study in Texas after that state adopted a concealed handgun license law said all convictions by license holders -- not just firearms-related offenses -- totaled less than .02 percent of the state's total convictions in 2011. The same study, conducted over three years, also concluded that Texas license-holders were 13 times less likely to commit any crimes at all.

In Oregon, applicants for concealed handgun licenses represent a broad cross-section, according to Fred Lee, Clackamas County's public range supervisor and a firearms instructor for more than seven years. "We get everybody and anybody," he said. "It's just people."

And more all the time.

"We expect to hold six classes in October," Lee said. "The classes will have as many as 25 people each."

The Clackamas shooting range offers community-friendly programs such as "Ladies Night," offering half-price lane fees for female shooters on Fridays. "Feed the Hungry Cereal Night" offers the same half-price lane fees on Thursdays for those who donate a box of hot or cold cereal.

Kristine Hayes didn't need any outside incentives to take up shooting. For years, she kept a revolver her father gave her in a gun safe. But every time she picked it up, she treated it like a hot ember ready to burn a hole in her hands. "I realized that I wasn't comfortable or familiar with it and that it wouldn't be any use to me," said Hayes, 46, of Southwest Portland. "So I figured I should get some instruction."

Hayes enrolled in classes about 2 1/2 years ago at the Clackamas range and began shooting in a supervised setting. The more she learned, the better she shot. And the more she shot, the more she liked it. A quick learner, she began shooting in competitions.

"I have taken classes all over the Northwest," Hayes said. "But this place still has probably the best instruction I've ever had. The primary focus is safety -- first and foremost."

Hayes carefully uncased her Smith & Wesson M&P rifle, an AR-15 derivative that she converted to shoot relatively low-power .22-caliber rimfire ammunition acceptable in indoor target ranges. Hayes pulled the stock up to her shoulder and lined up the sights on a fresh target.

"Now," Hayes said, squinting into the sight as she slowly squeezed the trigger. "I feel like I'm just...beginning...to really...get the hang of it..."

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