Demand for gun carry permits is surging in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area of Minnesota, as it is across the country, out of concern the Connecticut school massacre will lead to new, tougher gun control laws, according the
Minneapolis Star Tribune.
The newspaper reported that in records in a three-county area around the Twin Cities have already been broken as applications pour in from worried gun owners and first-time buyers.
"Every time there's media chatter about gun control, we see an upsurge in applications," Anoka County Sheriff's Commander Paul Sommer told the Star Tribune.
In Hennepin County, 61 applicants on Tuesday sought permits to carry guns, after 43 applications Monday. Both numbers were more than double the daily average of 20 to 30.
"I think there is probably a nexus to the shootings in Newtown," Dakota County Sheriff Dave Bellows said, calling the number of applications in the wake of the Connecticut incident "extraordinarily high."
One Anoka County resident who spoke to the newspaper on the condition that his name not be used, said news like the Newtown school massacre "makes people want to buy guns" to defend themselves and their families.
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