CO Cops Oppose Tighter Gun Laws

Say lawmakers threaten individual rights

DENVER — Colorado was once one of the most lenient gun-control states, but now a slate of Democratic-sponsored bills could change all that and give the state a greater say in who carries a weapon.

As one legislative aide put it, "It is the Wild West out here."

But many Coloradoans — both residents and police alike — historically have liked it that way.

"An armed society is a polite society. The more people who have guns, the politer the society becomes," Weld County Sheriff John Cooke told Watchdog.org. "I encourage my constituents to get concealed weapon permits. We had 450 issued in February alone."