As if law-abiding Denverites weren’t vulnerable enough to skyrocketing crime – City Hall now wants to make sure they can’t even defend themselves.

The administration of Mayor Michael Hancock is proposing to bar the state’s many concealed-weapons permit holders from bearing arms for self-protection in city parks and on other municipal property. The ban would apply to Denver’s mountain parks outside city limits, as well.

The proposal, drafted by the City Attorney’s Office, is scheduled to be presented to a committee of the Denver City Council today.

Some 400,000 to 500,000 Coloradans have concealed-weapons permits, according to one estimate by the Colorado Municipal League. Under a state law in effect for over two decades, counties must grant the permits to citizens who pass a background check, submit fingerprints and can show competency in handling firearms.

The policy has worked well over the years, exceeding expectations for safety. Permit holders are almost never involved in crimes, and permits rarely are revoked for abuses involving firearms. Criminals, on the other hand, don’t bother to apply for the permits.

Last year, gun-unfriendly Democrats who run the legislature passed a new law letting local governments curb the right to concealed carry in designated areas. Denver City Hall now aims to do just that.

But why? If there is one slice of the population that is least likely to commit a gun crime, it is those explicitly permitted – and officially vetted – to carry a gun. They also are in the best position to dissuade a criminal in the absence of law officers.

Meanwhile, the Hancock administration couldn’t have picked a worse time to crack down on the lawful majority’s right to arms. Violent crimes and property crimes have been soaring. Making matters worse, the legislature passed another law last year that makes it almost impossible to charge convicted felons with felony possession of a firearm. The new law has tied cops’ hands.

Bottom line: More bad guys get to prowl our streets with guns. Law-abiding Denverites who try to defend themselves face up to a $50 fine and up to $999 and 300 days in jail for a subsequent offense. How’s that for justice reform?

Denver Gazette editorial board