Getting a carry permit in Tennessee was an adventure in itself. First I had to locate, register, pay the $65 dollars (It would have been $75 if I had not registered early), and then attend an 7/8 hour training class, that included a classroom portion, written test, and a range/firing test. There were numerous classes offered at the various firing ranges around town, but I opted to attend the class at Pellissippi State Technical Community College since it was less expensive than the ones offered at the ranges. My research showed that taking the class at one of the ranges would cost $90 to $100. $25 to $35 more than the Pellissippi State class. The only drawback with taking the class at Pellissippi State is that I had to drive over to the John Sevier range to shoot and pay an additional $5.50 range fee. That still made the class $20 to $30 less than going to take it anywhere else.
The description of the course from the Pellissippi State web site reads "Completing the Tennessee State Handgun Safety Coursefor the handgun carry permit is required before application can be made for the state permit. The classroom portion is conducted at the Pellissippi State campus off Hardin Valley Road.Participants then go to the John Sevier Range on Rifle Range Road, where the firing exercises are held. Four-five hours classroom time + 3 hours range time. Upon satisfactory completion of the course, participants are given the necessary certificate to apply for the state carry permit at their nearest Department of Safety office. The instructor is an NRA certified firearms instructor and Tennessee certified handgun instructor. Students must furnish their own gun and ammunition. $5.50 range fee payable to instructor."
I was a little leery about taking the course, but I had no choice if I wanted a permit. After all, I was a Reconnaissance Marine. I have shot all types of weapons. What was I going to learn in this class. Well, I was pleasantly surprised. I thought that Mr. Huffman, who is also a seasoned Sheriff's Deputy for Knox County, conducted a fantastic and very effective course. He brought several types of handguns (pistols and revolvers) for the class to take a look at, hold, ask questions about. He covered a great deal of useful information and I feel that I learned a lot from him about firearms, the types of ammunition available for self defense, the laws related to carrying a firearm, how to properly conceal a firearm, the use of holsters, loading and unloading, the use deadly force, liabilities, effective grips and stance, storage, misfires/squib fires, what to do if stopped while carrying your weapon, extra magazines, and self defense with a firearm. He even covered how to properly clean a firearm. It was a very well done class. He teaches some other classes through Pellissippi State and I hope to take another one or two from him.
After the classroom portion, Mr. Huffman gave us our written test. He taught well enough to make the test easy. After the tests were graded and he was sure that we passed he dismissed us and had us meet him at the John Sevier range for the shooting portion of our course. We all met and made our way over to the pistol range. Once there Mr. Huffman covered our course of fire and we hung our targets. We shot at 5, 7, and 15 yards. Again, Mr. Huffman was great. If folks had issues with their weapon he helped them out. If folks were having issues with their stance, he helped them out. I think we shot 48 rounds and had to have something like 35 hits on the target to pass (I might not have this correct), but it should be close. After we completed our course of fire we collected our targets and Mr. Huffman counted our hits to determine if we passed. I passed. The only thing that I didn't like was that he was required to keep our targets as documentation that we shot and passed the shooting portion of the class. Mr. Huffman then gave the folks that passed their certificated to apply for a carry permit.
Once I got my certificate to apply for a carry permit all I had to do was take the certificate and a birth certificate or passport to one of the full service drivers licenses offices. I went once and forgot my passport, but the folks there did give me my paperwork to fill out. On my second try I gave them my paperwork, I even remembered to not sign it until they were able to witness it, paid my $115 fee for the permit and background check, and had my picture taken. All together it only took me about 45 minutes at the drivers license office to take care of all of that. To top it all off, the folks there were very nice and very helpful. The lady that helped me even thanked me for being nice to her. It's my guess that folks give her a hard time.
They told me it could take up to something like 6 months to receive my permit. I got it in about 3 weeks. The next issue I had was finding an adequate holster and magazine pouch to carry, but that is another story.
So go take the class and make sure you can defend yourself!
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