For the most part, if a county allows residents to carry a concealed weapon, they'll need to go through a permitting process.

Stanislaus County Jail guards, however, feel they should be exempt from this rule.

A spokesperson said it's not like they're asking for special consideration.  State prison guards don't have to fill out stacks of paperwork and pay permitting fees, and neither do patrol deputies.

Sheriff's corrections deputies say they're simply asking for a level playing field.

The issue has become a central part of the reelection campaign for Sheriff Adam Christianson, who will face off against Deputy Tom Letras in the June primary.  If neither man receives more than 50 percent of the vote, they will move to a runoff election in November.

Christianson, who was reportedly supported by corrections officer deputies in his reelection bid four years ago, said department morale is low and he's looking to change that.

Deputies feel permitting process is an "undue burden"

A lawsuit has since been filed to have the permitting requirement lifted.

Corrections officers point out they always run the risk of running into a former inmate, one of their associates or family members while off duty, and the concealed carry request is more about protecting their safety.

Jail deputies require the same protections as state corrections officers, according to a spokesperson, and the risk that they could encounter a released, violent, prior felon is just as real as it is for those who work for the state.

The County Counsel said he doesn't necessarily disagree with the rationale, he said, but the state has classified prison deputies as being in a different class from jail deputies.

That, he said, is the crux of the matter.