Firearms networks and instructors report 100 percent spike in requests for concealed weapons courses

Companies and networks of firearms instructors that provide training for concealed weapons permits are reporting huge increases in requests for their services, according to The Independent.

The increase comes after the massacre in Parkland, Florida, where 17 people were murdered on Feb. 14.

How much has it increased?

In some states, requests for concealed weapons training has risen by as much as 250 percent, according to the report.

One company told The Independent it has had even more requests for training than it did following the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School mass killing in Newtown, Connecticut.

“There’s been a lot of shootings, unfortunately, in this country, but we’ve never seen a spike this big before, even with Newtown,” Chris Schultrop, the CEO and co-founder of Minnesota-based concealed permit training network National Carry Academy, told The Independent. His company works across 27 states.

The NCA reports it had a 103.5 percent increase in interest in its trainings since the Parkland, Florida, mass killing on Valentine’s Day. A spike of 283 per cent was reported in Ohio.

Similar increases were reported by Concealed Carry Inc., which calls itself the largest concealed carry training network in the United States and works across 28 states, according to the report. The company saw about a 250 per cent increase in interest in concealed carry in Florida, along with a 100 percent increase in its overall network, according to Jacob Paulsen, a trainer with the network.

Has this happened before?

Paulsen told The Independent similar patterns repeat after each mass killing appears in the headlines.

The increasing interest in concealed weapons also comes as Republicans attempt to push a national concealed carry law that would force states to recognize all permits issued in the nation. In contrast, survivors of the Parkland, Florida, mass killing are continuing to push for stricter gun control laws. Students from the high school have organized marches and maintained a strong social media presence as they promote their message.