Stalking Victim: Protective Orders Not Enough, Women Need Handguns

A woman who waited over 60 days to receive a concealed carry permit while being stalked is urging Indiana lawmakers to realize protective orders are not enough, women need handguns.

According to the Journal Gazette, Dawn Hillyer says she was stalked for six years and lived in “constant fear.” Her stalker allegedly targeted her online and physically, eventually convincing a judge to issue a protective order against the suspect.

Yet Hillyer says the stalking continued, so she applied for a concealed carry permit. She spent the next 60 days waiting in fear and no permit arrived. She says that those two months, living defenseless when away from her home, made her realize the process of acquiring a concealed permit is “unacceptable for victims of stalkers or domestic abusers.” And she became convinced that women “need more than just a piece of paper to protect themselves”- they need a handgun.

Hillyer received her concealed permit after the 60 days passed and it liberated her. She said, “Firearms are known as the great equalizer and for good reason. When I got a firearm, I finally felt a sense of control again.”

She is now supporting Indiana House Bill 1071 – a bill that would give a special carry allowance to women who have a protective order against a stalker or domestic abuser. Such women would be able to carry while their concealed permit application is being processed, thus avoiding the scenario where they spend 60-plus days living in fear without a viable means of self-defense.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) recently vetoed similar legislation in his state. He argued allowing individuals who obtain protective orders to bypass the concealed application process “perpetuates the dangerous fiction that the victims of domestic violence will be safer by arming themselves”

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and host of Bullets with AWR Hawkins, a Breitbart News podcast. He is also the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.