Nevada Gaming Officials Relax Rules for Armed Guards’ Carry Permits

Nevada is not one of the 29 Constitutional Carry states, but as of today a privileged few will enjoy the ability to carry a firearm without a permit thanks to the state’s Gaming Commission. 

Casinos are dealing with a shortage of security guards, a problem that’s grown more acute in recent months after the Control Board was informed it could no longer use the federal Criminal Justice Information System to conduct background checks on new hires. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, that decision has made it much more difficult for new guards to lawfully carry on the job, with recent hires forced to wait up to six months because of the changes. Now, however, the Gaming Commission says those hires are free to carry on the job, so long as there’s evidence that they’ve merely applied for a carry license. 

[Kristi] Torgerson [who leads the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s Enforcement Division] huddled with Nevada Resorts Association President and CEO Virginia Valentine, representatives of the Attorney General’s Office and law enforcement leaders with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to find a solution. 

The answer: enabling applicants for casino security guard positions temporary registration for licensing following a background check by a resort’s local sheriff’s department instead of the Control Board. In Las Vegas, that means going to Metro.

In order to make the change, the Control Board needed industry support and the board conducted public hearings at Control Board meetings in May and October to make the switch. 

Thursday’s commission meeting was the final hearing. With the commission’s approval, the new policy takes effect immediately.

“I think you know that many resort security members do come with backgrounds from law enforcement but then many do not and so this process of registration is critically important for our armed security guards, public safety and tourism safety for our team members and our guests is still of paramount importance to us,” said Valentine, whose organization represents most resorts in Southern and Northern Nevada.

I don’t think a carry permit should be necessary for any lawful gun owner to exercise their right to bear arms, but I’m also not a big fan of exempting only a select few from the state’s laws regarding concealed carry. The casinos and gaming establishments may very well be in dire need of armed guards, but I’m guessing there are also plenty of Nevadans who also have an immediate and pressing need to be able to protect themselves with a firearm. 

If the state is going to allow these businesses to circumvent Nevada’s regulations on lawful carry so they can better protect patrons (and all of the cash on the premises), why can’t lawful gun owners do the same? At the very least, shouldn’t there be a process that allows for folks to also lawfully carry once they’ve submitted their carry application if, for instance, they can provide a valid order of protection or documentation of stalking or abuse?

Now that the Gaming Commission has decided it’s not all that important for casino guards to have a valid carry license before they can be armed on the job, lawmakers should follow suit regarding the ability of average, everyday Nevadans to protect themselves in public. Why not let everyone carry once their application has been submitted instead of making them wait until it’s approved?  

The odds of the Democrat-controlled majority actually leveling the playing field are about the same as you or I winning the jackpot on a single pull of a slot machine’s arm, but it’s still the right thing to do. Like it or not, the state has essentially said that the right of casinos to protect their patrons and property is more important than the right of the people to bear arms in self-defense… the latest example of the Second Amendment being consigned to second-class status.