4/9/18 – 5:22 A.M.

The number of people getting a concealed carry permit in Hancock County is growing. The county averages just over 500 license approvals per year according to a Courier analysis. In 2016 the county issued 795 concealed carry permits. The most the county has ever issued in a single year was 858 in 2013.

In 2009, 76 people renewed their licenses in the county. More than 340 people got renewals last year. The licenses last five years.

Tina Driftmeyer is a transport warrant officer for the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office. She says applications seem to go up after school shootings. The 858 licenses issued in 2013 came the year after the Sandy Hook Shooting.

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