Bruce H
October 12, 2003, 02:31 PM
Missouri faces double-barreled reality with new concealed-gun law
By KEN NEWTON
kenn@npgco.com
The Old West meets the new jurisprudence in Missouri. It’s the double-barreled reality of packing a piece and drafting a legal brief.
We wait to find out if the pen is mightier than the Glock.
Last month, the Missouri General Assembly got its swagger on by overriding Gov. Bob Holden’s veto of a concealed-weapons law. Returning fire, the governor last week moved to enact administrative rules barring weapons from state property.
And at week’s end, with the new law set to go into effect Saturday, a circuit judge delayed its implementation, beseeching a higher court to determine its constitutionality.
When Warren Zevon wrote the song “Lawyers, Guns and Money,” he might have envisioned this.
In a time when meager revenues squeeze the state budget like a boa, political opponents in Jefferson City find less range for scrapping over money matters. The concealed-weapons measure gives partisans a way to metastasize their rancor.
Never mind that Missouri voters beat back a similar measure in a statewide ballot just four years ago.
Why ignore the will of the people? Well, chances are they just didn’t know what was good for them.
Or maybe they’re indifferent. Consider that our state senator, Charlie Shields, represents Buchanan and Platte counties. In April 1999, residents of those two counties opposed the concealed-weapons measure by a majority of 5,419 votes.
Despite the clear intent of these constituents, Mr. Shields voted last month to make a similar measure the law of Missouri.
Yet people don’t seem especially worked up about this betrayal. Distracted by state job losses, maybe they feel the arming of more Missourians carries a sort of retro appeal.
In any case, legislators thought to rewrite Section 571.030 of Missouri’s revised statutes with an eye at keeping public places from becoming firing ranges. The exemptions go on for pages.
Unless with specific consent, you can’t take concealed weapons to a police station. Nor to a correctional facility or within 25 feet of a polling place on any election day.
Concealed weapons won’t be allowed in courthouses, from juvenile hearings all the way up to the Supreme Court. Colleges and grade schools and high schools can keep concealed weapons away from their students, and so can child-care facilities.
You can take a concealed gun into church only with the consent of the minister. It might give scriptural arguments a new dynamic.
A person can’t conceal a weapon in a bar, though a person can in a bar and grill. If the place gets “at least 51 percent of its gross annual income” from the sale of food, it’s open season.
In a nice legislative touch, residents can’t conceal weapons at a city council meeting, though council members with the proper permits can carry weapons. Talk about an unfair fight.
Any sports arena with seating of 5,000 or more is off-limits for concealed weapons. In its festival-seating configuration, Civic Arena holds 5,000. For basketball, it holds 3,800. Not sure what to do with that math, but Phil Welch Stadium seems a safe place to go armed.
Private-property owners can post their premises as off-limits to concealed firearms with signs of at least 11 by 14 inches.
Mr. Holden said Thursday he wants to ban concealed weapons at Little League parks, where emotions often run high.
I note the exemptions don’t include newspaper offices, where emotions also run high on occasion, often with less rationality than heard at Little League games.
(Note to human-resources department: Please look into those signs.)
Looks like poor old pants wetting Ken is in for a hard life. He must fly off the handle quite often and doesn't want anyone to take exception to his brilliance.
By KEN NEWTON
kenn@npgco.com
The Old West meets the new jurisprudence in Missouri. It’s the double-barreled reality of packing a piece and drafting a legal brief.
We wait to find out if the pen is mightier than the Glock.
Last month, the Missouri General Assembly got its swagger on by overriding Gov. Bob Holden’s veto of a concealed-weapons law. Returning fire, the governor last week moved to enact administrative rules barring weapons from state property.
And at week’s end, with the new law set to go into effect Saturday, a circuit judge delayed its implementation, beseeching a higher court to determine its constitutionality.
When Warren Zevon wrote the song “Lawyers, Guns and Money,” he might have envisioned this.
In a time when meager revenues squeeze the state budget like a boa, political opponents in Jefferson City find less range for scrapping over money matters. The concealed-weapons measure gives partisans a way to metastasize their rancor.
Never mind that Missouri voters beat back a similar measure in a statewide ballot just four years ago.
Why ignore the will of the people? Well, chances are they just didn’t know what was good for them.
Or maybe they’re indifferent. Consider that our state senator, Charlie Shields, represents Buchanan and Platte counties. In April 1999, residents of those two counties opposed the concealed-weapons measure by a majority of 5,419 votes.
Despite the clear intent of these constituents, Mr. Shields voted last month to make a similar measure the law of Missouri.
Yet people don’t seem especially worked up about this betrayal. Distracted by state job losses, maybe they feel the arming of more Missourians carries a sort of retro appeal.
In any case, legislators thought to rewrite Section 571.030 of Missouri’s revised statutes with an eye at keeping public places from becoming firing ranges. The exemptions go on for pages.
Unless with specific consent, you can’t take concealed weapons to a police station. Nor to a correctional facility or within 25 feet of a polling place on any election day.
Concealed weapons won’t be allowed in courthouses, from juvenile hearings all the way up to the Supreme Court. Colleges and grade schools and high schools can keep concealed weapons away from their students, and so can child-care facilities.
You can take a concealed gun into church only with the consent of the minister. It might give scriptural arguments a new dynamic.
A person can’t conceal a weapon in a bar, though a person can in a bar and grill. If the place gets “at least 51 percent of its gross annual income” from the sale of food, it’s open season.
In a nice legislative touch, residents can’t conceal weapons at a city council meeting, though council members with the proper permits can carry weapons. Talk about an unfair fight.
Any sports arena with seating of 5,000 or more is off-limits for concealed weapons. In its festival-seating configuration, Civic Arena holds 5,000. For basketball, it holds 3,800. Not sure what to do with that math, but Phil Welch Stadium seems a safe place to go armed.
Private-property owners can post their premises as off-limits to concealed firearms with signs of at least 11 by 14 inches.
Mr. Holden said Thursday he wants to ban concealed weapons at Little League parks, where emotions often run high.
I note the exemptions don’t include newspaper offices, where emotions also run high on occasion, often with less rationality than heard at Little League games.
(Note to human-resources department: Please look into those signs.)
Looks like poor old pants wetting Ken is in for a hard life. He must fly off the handle quite often and doesn't want anyone to take exception to his brilliance.