During the 2003 legislative session, even before concealed carry had been passed, SACMO began a campaign to put an end to the Missouri law that required residents to obtain permission from their local county sheriff before they could purchase a handgun. Over the years, many of us had become aware of instances in which the law was being applied unfairly and in ways never intended by the legislators. Residents could have gone to court in these instances, but for many that was not possible because of financial reasons.

Early in 2003, SACMO heard about one such individual. That person was Mr. Jerry Troyer. He was told by the Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP) that he would have to obtain a permit to acquire (PTA) from his local sheriff before they would return his pistol which was lost and then turned in to the MSHP, despite his ability to prove the pistol was his legal property. When he asked SACMO for help, we agreed to assist with his legal expenses.

While the fight to pass and implement concealed carry was going on, Mr. Troyer’s effort to recover his pistol dragged through the legal system. In 2006, after concealed carry was fully implemented, the Troyer case was still unresolved. SACMO began a full court press to finally put an end to the PTA. We sent a letter to each and every county sheriff requesting a copy of their PTA application. When then took the responses and compiled a summary of how this law was being abused. We researched the original purpose of the law and how it applied to today’s circumstances. SACMO presented this research to the legislators in Jefferson City and called for it’s total repeal.

During this year’s legislative session, SACMO made several trips to Jeff City to testify before committees in favor of the repeal of PTA in addition to bills on castle doctrine and bills to prevent the seizure of firearms during an emergency. After years of work and thanks to our many supporters, we have succeeded in getting bills passed to prevent the seizure of your firearms during an emergency, prevent you from being sued for legally defending yourself and the complete repeal of permit to acquire.

Each of these laws went in to effect on August 28, 2007

SACMO has already begun work on the issues we will face in the future. We will continue to fight for Missouri gun owners and we are counting on your continued support. We could not have achieved these successes without your support, nor will we be able to continue without it.