Saturday, October 27, 2001

Don't ban guns from state Capitol buildings

AUSTIN - Two knife-wielding men confronted the man playing his guitar in a park. The men were threatening to kill him - until he pulled out his gun. The hoodlums left without incident.
   A homeowner shot and killed an armed burglar and scared a fellow intruder away. According to police, the thieves would have killed the man and his wife if the couple had been unarmed.
   These are among dozens of stories of law-abiding citizens using their right to bear arms to protect themselves. Texas lawmakers should seriously consider such incidents as they review security measures at the state Capitol.
   In recent weeks, Capitol security has been under scrutiny because of the terrorist attacks. A study by the House General Investigating Committee last year uncovered serious security gaps at state buildings, including in the Capitol.
   One concern is that there are no restrictions on concealed weapons carried by permit holders, including in the public galleries overlooking the House and Senate chambers. The report recommended banning guns in the Capitol.
   Safety should be the top priority but banning concealed weapons doesn't make it a safer building. On the contrary, such action could make it a more dangerous place.
   Some people have suggested putting up signs to prohibit concealed weapons in the Capitol. This, in effect, puts citizens with concealed weapons permits at a disadvantage against a potential criminal. The law-abiding citizen will obey the sign, but does anyone really believe that a sign will stop a madman intent on shooting someone at the Capitol? Of course not.
   Imagine the horror of a concealed weapons permit holder who could be forced to sit by and watch a criminal gun down elected officials in the Senate or House chambers. An armed citizen with a concealed weapons permit could prevent further carnage.
   Unless you set up metal detectors at the entrance, which would prevent everyone from bringing guns into the Capitol, a concealed weapons ban makes no sense.
   The lesson from Luby's
   Let's not forget what happened in Killeen on Oct. 16, 1991. That's when George Hennard, an unemployed 35-year-old Belton man, drove his pickup through the plate-glass window of Luby's Cafeteria and opened fire on the lunch crowd. He killed 23 people and wounded 20 others in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history.
   State Rep. Suzanna Gratia Hupp of Lampasas was eating lunch with her parents and had left her revolver in the car because state law at the time did not permit the carrying of concealed weapons. Hupp still believes she could have saved many lives if the law would have allowed her to carry her gun inside Luby's.
   That tragedy, which killed her parents, prompted her to run for political office and push for a concealed weapons law. Texas is now among 33 states that have laws guaranteeing the right of people to carry firearms for protection against criminals. Texas' concealed handgun law took effect Jan. 1, 1996. At the time, lawmakers debated whether to ban guns at the Capitol but eventually rejected the idea.
   Anti-gun advocates predicted Wild West shootouts if Texas passed the concealed weapons law. And they said crime would increase and criminals would be allowed to obtain such permits. But most people with concealed weapons permits are law-abiding citizens; crime is decreasing; and there's no evidence of more gun violence because of the concealed weapons law.
   As of Oct. 1, there were 218,105 concealed handgun permits in Texas, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. The state has revoked only 1,660 licenses since 1996 for various reasons, including violations that have nothing to do with firearm possession.
   The bottom line is that criminals can strike at any time. Restricting the carrying of handguns strips law-abiding citizens of an effective means of defending themselves.
   Ty Meighan is chief of the Scripps Howard Austin Bureau and can be reached at 512-334-6640 or meighant@scripps.com.
  
  

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Ty Meighan is chief of the Scripps Howard Austin Bureau. You can reach him by phone at (512) 334-6640 or by email at meighant@scripps.com.

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