Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said he supports the right for people to carry a concealed weapon, as long as they get appropriate training.

"If you’re going to care enough to have a gun, to own a gun, to carry it on your person or in your home, you must care enough to know how to properly and safely handle the firearm," Judd said. "Once that bullet goes off, once it explodes, you can’t call it back and it can be deadly. We want people to carry concealed firearms, we want them to be well-trained, we want them to be safe."

In light of the new law, the Polk County Sheriff's Office is offering a firearms safety course once a month. The course shows gun owners how to safely handle weapons and teaches them what they can and can't do under the new law. 

Donahue Dolden has owned a gun for 10 years, but wanted to take part in the training class on Saturday to get a refresher. 

"I always want to be a responsible gun owner," Dolden said. "That’s always important to me. I do love my gun, so to be responsible with it is what’s important."

As an Army veteran, Dolden believes it's important for people to get trained before handling a weapon.

"You do need it," he said. "You just can’t buy a gun, throw it in the safe and think you’re going to be able to use it. It doesn’t work that way."

Unlike Dolden, Marty Hancock is a new gun owner. Even though going through training and getting a permit is no longer required by law, Hancock felt it was important to learn how to safely handle weapons.

"It’s like driving a car without learning how to drive a car," he said. "You don’t want to have something in the house or have something that you don’t know how to use and go try to use it. We want to use it the correct way."

Sheriff Judd said there are important parts of the law gun owners should know, including that you must carry a valid ID with a concealed weapon, open carry is still against the law and you still must be older than 21 to purchase a firearm. Judd encourages gun owners to still obtain a permit, explaining it gives you reciprocity in states that don't allow for permitless concealed carry and exempts you from the three-day waiting period when buying new guns. 

"With the new law, you can have a gun at ready and easy access," Judd said. "If you don’t use it within the confines of the law, good people can end up in a whole lot of trouble very fast."

The Polk County Sheriff's Office will be offering its firearms safety course once a month. It costs $45 to participate and the proceeds go to Polk Sheriff's Charities. Click here to learn more.