The crush of Lackawanna County residents seeking permits to carry concealed weapons shows no sign of letting up - to the point Sheriff John Szymanski's office is adding extra hours to handle it.
The sheriff announced Monday that his office in the courthouse will stay open until 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays to issue gun permits. The extended hours start today.
"We are trying to accommodate the citizens who are having difficulty making arrangements to get in here" during regular business hours, the sheriff said.
After handing out 413 permits last month - up from 265 in December 2011 - the office has been issuing about 40 permits per day since Jan. 1, Mr. Szymanski said.
"It's hasn't subsided," he said. "It's a constant line."
The number of permit applicants crowding the sheriff's office grew so large that Mr. Szymanski's staff had to establish a sign-in sheet. People were arguing about who was there first, the sheriff said.
"Now they're taken in order of their sign-in. It's like a doctor's office here now," he said. "It's unbelievable."
The demand for concealed weapons permits - technically a license to carry a firearm - comes as President Barack Obama's administration works on gun policy reforms in the aftermath of the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Twenty first-graders and six adult school employees were killed in the rampage. The gunman also shot and killed his mother at the family home. He eventually shot himself at the school as authorities closed in.
A task force led by Vice President Joe Biden is expected to release its recommendations soon.
Mr. Szymanski said his office's extended hours will remain in effect "until this onslaught ceases," but at least through Feb. 28.
There will be some cost involved for county taxpayers. Although he anticipates a deputy assigned to the Central Processing Center will be "borrowed" to handle the security screening at the courthouse entrance, the sheriff said the longer hours will mean overtime for at least one employee.
"The cost won't be much, but you have to do what you have to do," Mr. Szymanski said.
Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com