Gun Stores See High Demand - ABC5 News Des Moines, IA

Gun Stores See High Demand

By Alex Schuman

aschuman@myabc5.com

@alexschuman

Michael Sporer, the owner of JLM Shooter Supply, gets a lot of new customers these days.

"There's been an explosion of gun sales since the election," he said.

President Obama's victory for a second term combined with a national conversation following the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut about possible new gun regulations, is driving first time gun owners into Sporer's store. 

"We have a lot of first time gun owners," Sporer said.  "There's been a wide spread panic where people who never even thought about [buying a gun] until they thought they may lose their right to have them."

In December, Polk County received nearly 700 applications for gun permits compared to around 400 last year.  The sudden rush put unexpected pressure on stores in Central Iowa and their suppliers.

"We're at the mercy of distributors cause they're all out too," he said.  "Cause no one anticipated this."

Sporer spends two to three hours a day on a computer searching for the types of guns customers want.  Most of them request assault rifles, which are the same type of weapons they fear will be banned.

Sporer says even though business is good, he hopes legislators who want to create new bans will back down.

"Hopefully cooler heads will prevail," he said. "And our congressmen and senators will realize that's not the answer, and we won't get any legislation."