Although [Judy] Dutko believes that the Second Amendment should guarantee her permit to bear arms anywhere in the country, in California the gun laws said differently, she said.

“They don’t let people to defend themselves,” she said.

During the Rodney King riots, she carried a gun in her purse for protection, and if police had caught her, she would have been an outlaw, she said.

"We can’t depend on police to protect us," said Dutko.

Christy Foote, a 29-year-old real estate agent, explained further. "They do not do anything until there is a problem. If you have your own gun, you have a plan of your own."

"You rarely have to fire a gun," said [Jane Anne] Hulen, a 52-year-old marketing director at Gunsite in Paulden, who carries a holstered 1911 .45 caliber semi-auto pistol. "You just have to show it. That is all it takes."

These women are part of an ever growing number of women who choose not to rely on anyone else for their own safety.

No longer a "boy's club," these women are realizing that firearms are not only essential survival tools, but can be a lot of fun, too. Women are attending competitions and shooting clubs in greater and greater numbers, ofthen beating out the men in the process!

These women are quick to point out that for all of the benefits, firearms can still be dangerous if not handled properly.

Hulen said gun owners should live by four firearms safety rules including that all guns are always loaded; never let the muzzle cover anything which you are not willing to destroy; keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target; and always be sure of your target.

"There is no such a thing as an accidental discharge," she said. "They are all negligent."

"You don’t just pick up a violin and play a sonata. "It takes practice to do that" and the guns are no different.

Click here to read the full article.