The Washington Times editorial board praises, sorta, the D.C. government for updating an out-of-date list of gun training instructors, and councilmember Phil Mendelson for introducing legislation that would allow D.C. residents to get that training in District limits.

In July, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals smacked down the city of Chica

go over instructional requirements similar to the District’s. The Second Amendment Foundation and Illinois State Rifle Association sued the Windy City for requiring training at shooting ranges that were banned by city ordinance.

As The Washington Times has exposed, Washington has created the same impossible situation, requiring residents to trek to Maryland or Virginia if they want to own a gun in the District. Feeling the heat, D.C. Councilman Phil Mendelson introduced the Firearms Amendment Act last month to, among other things, allow the gun safety course to be completed within the city – in theory.

Washington, of course, has no shooting ranges for private citizens. For Mr. Mendelson’s proposal to be more than a public-relations stunt, the city should allow residents to use the police shooting range to complete the training demand.

While calling the “trek” to Maryland and Virginia an “impossible situation” is LOL-worthy, the board does have a point. If D.C. residents are allowed to own guns if they get trained in how to use those guns, they should be allowed to get that training in D.C. It’s silly to throw up arbitrary barriers.

Photo by Bob B. Brown via Flickr/Creative Commons Attribution Generic 2.0 License