The federal concealed carry weapon (CCW) auditing program that Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is opposing is routine and has been in place for years, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).
“Missouri has been through this routine audit multiple times, most recently in 2018,” the FBI said in a statement to the St. Louis Record.
The bureau was responding to reports that Schmitt had told Missouri sheriffs statewide on Aug. 9 not to comply with FBI agents if they request an onsite review of their concealed carry permit system.
“As part of the planned Missouri audit, a small sampling of system transactions is to be inspected for compliance and to ensure there is no misuse of CJIS systems,” the FBI’s email stated.
Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) is an FBI repository of nationwide information collected from law enforcement and the criminal justice community.
"This information falls under the oversight of the CJIS Advisory Policy Board (APB), which is comprised of representatives from state, local, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies," an FBI spokesperson said on Friday, Aug. 12. "This Board sets policy for security and acceptable use of this information and has assigned the FBI responsibility for ensuring compliance through a routine auditing program of all participating agencies which has been in place for years."
Out of 24 randomly audited sheriff’s offices, none released anything pertaining to CCWs, according to Moniteau County Sheriff Tony Wheatley.
“They answered two of the standard questions but nothing, as far as I know, was given from any sheriff pertaining to any CCW files,” he said.
As previously reported in the St. Louis Record, Schmitt issued a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray in which he stated that obtaining information about concealed carry permit holders is illegal statewide.
“At no point would auditors require access to lists such as state-approved concealed carry holders, nor would the CJIS Division retain information beyond what is necessary to address a specific compliance concern," the bureau stated in an email.
Under the Revised Statues of Missouri Law 571.101.9(2), sharing protected information retained in the concealed carry permit system with the federal government is prohibited.
“Any person who violates the provisions of this subdivision by disclosing protected information shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor,” the subsection states.
Schmitt was elected the Republican primary candidate for election to the U.S. Senate in November. He did not respond to requests for comment.
“It's unfortunate that we, as a country, have become so divided that we can't even get cooperation between local law enforcement and the FBI and it's unfortunate that law enforcement issues have become politicized when they really shouldn't and we need to rise above politics and work together,” said John Wood, a former United States attorney for the Western District of Missouri serving as the chief federal law enforcement official in Kansas City, St. Joseph, Columbia, Jefferson City, Springfield, and Joplin.
Wood is campaigning as an Independent against Schmitt to replace U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt in the November mid-term elections.