Steven Mace
02-14-2002, 03:43 AM
Cauthorn revives weapons debate
Concealed-gun legislation similar to Prop B.
By JOSH FLORY of the Tribune’s staff
Published Wednesday, February 13, 2002
JEFFERSON CITY - A promised gubernatorial veto didn’t stop gun rights supporters from urging the passage of a concealed-weapons bill yesterday.
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony on a bill from Sen. John Cauthorn, R-Mexico, that would allow Missouri residents to apply for concealed-weapon permits. Voters defeated a conceal-and-carry referendum in April of 1999, but Cauthorn’s bill is slightly different from the referendum defeated by voters. It would ban, for instance, concealed weapons in sports stadiums and bars, places that were not banned under Proposition B. As the previous measure did, Cauthorn’s bill would require applicants to receive firearms training before being granted a permit.
Asked by the committee chairman if his bill would pass in a new referendum, Cauthorn said he didn’t know but that "attitudes of people have changed" in the wake of last year’s terrorist attacks.
Elgar Macy of West Plains echoed Cauthorn’s assertion, saying the attacks proved that America is not invulnerable. "September 11th returned the onus of personal safety to the individual, because homeland security begins with each and every one of us," he said.
Most of the testimony on yesterday’s bill came from supporters, but two witnesses spoke out against the measure. Todd Elkins, a St. Joseph minister, said that "the wishes of the people in Prop B need to be upheld. … Does conceal-and-carry help to foster the type of community that we want in our state?" he asked. "I don’t think it does."
Don Kissell, a lobbyist for the Missouri Police Chiefs’ Association, said that group could take a neutral stand on the bill if some changes were made, such as making the permit application needs-based and requiring judges, rather than sheriffs, to be in charge of permitting.
The discussion is scheduled to continue today in the House, where three more conceal-and-carry bills will be heard in committee, including a bill sponsored by the House’s highest ranking Democrats, Majority Leader Wayne Crump and Speaker Jim Kreider. But no matter what happens in the legislature, the final word might rest with Gov. Bob Holden, who has pledged to veto any conceal-and-carry measure. That’s a change from his position last year, when the governor said he might consider such a bill, but gun proponents say the legislature should force him to make the decision.
"I think it’d be interesting to see if he actually does" veto the bill, said Greg Jeffery, of the Second Amendment Coalition of Missouri. "People are allowed to change their minds."
Missouri is one of seven states that strictly prohibits the carrying of concealed weapons, and Jeffery told legislators that since Missouri began debating the issue, 17 states have passed more lenient bills. He said the experience of other states proves that the warnings of gun opponents are unfounded. "All the problems opponents say are going to happen - well, it ain’t happening," he said.
The committee did not vote on the bill yesterday.
http://www.showmenews.com/2002/Feb/20020213News008.asp
Steve Mace
Concealed-gun legislation similar to Prop B.
By JOSH FLORY of the Tribune’s staff
Published Wednesday, February 13, 2002
JEFFERSON CITY - A promised gubernatorial veto didn’t stop gun rights supporters from urging the passage of a concealed-weapons bill yesterday.
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony on a bill from Sen. John Cauthorn, R-Mexico, that would allow Missouri residents to apply for concealed-weapon permits. Voters defeated a conceal-and-carry referendum in April of 1999, but Cauthorn’s bill is slightly different from the referendum defeated by voters. It would ban, for instance, concealed weapons in sports stadiums and bars, places that were not banned under Proposition B. As the previous measure did, Cauthorn’s bill would require applicants to receive firearms training before being granted a permit.
Asked by the committee chairman if his bill would pass in a new referendum, Cauthorn said he didn’t know but that "attitudes of people have changed" in the wake of last year’s terrorist attacks.
Elgar Macy of West Plains echoed Cauthorn’s assertion, saying the attacks proved that America is not invulnerable. "September 11th returned the onus of personal safety to the individual, because homeland security begins with each and every one of us," he said.
Most of the testimony on yesterday’s bill came from supporters, but two witnesses spoke out against the measure. Todd Elkins, a St. Joseph minister, said that "the wishes of the people in Prop B need to be upheld. … Does conceal-and-carry help to foster the type of community that we want in our state?" he asked. "I don’t think it does."
Don Kissell, a lobbyist for the Missouri Police Chiefs’ Association, said that group could take a neutral stand on the bill if some changes were made, such as making the permit application needs-based and requiring judges, rather than sheriffs, to be in charge of permitting.
The discussion is scheduled to continue today in the House, where three more conceal-and-carry bills will be heard in committee, including a bill sponsored by the House’s highest ranking Democrats, Majority Leader Wayne Crump and Speaker Jim Kreider. But no matter what happens in the legislature, the final word might rest with Gov. Bob Holden, who has pledged to veto any conceal-and-carry measure. That’s a change from his position last year, when the governor said he might consider such a bill, but gun proponents say the legislature should force him to make the decision.
"I think it’d be interesting to see if he actually does" veto the bill, said Greg Jeffery, of the Second Amendment Coalition of Missouri. "People are allowed to change their minds."
Missouri is one of seven states that strictly prohibits the carrying of concealed weapons, and Jeffery told legislators that since Missouri began debating the issue, 17 states have passed more lenient bills. He said the experience of other states proves that the warnings of gun opponents are unfounded. "All the problems opponents say are going to happen - well, it ain’t happening," he said.
The committee did not vote on the bill yesterday.
http://www.showmenews.com/2002/Feb/20020213News008.asp
Steve Mace