Weapons bill drawing fire; Concealed carry legislation gets weighed down
http://www.newszap.com/articles/2006/05 ... /dsn03.txt
"By Randall Chase, Associated Press
DOVER - Opponents of a bill that would make it easier for Delaware residents to get permits to carry concealed weapons are trying to kill the proposal by weighing it down with amendments, supporters say.
The bill would limit the discretion judges now have to decide whether to issue permits and would eliminate a requirement that applicants must give a reason for carrying a gun.
A dozen amendments have been placed with the bill since it was released in March by the House Public Safety Committee prior to the General Assembly's two-week spring break.
Among other things, the amendments would require permit applicants to allow state officials to have access to their medical records, and would add the names of permit holders to a state criminal justice database that is often used by police officers making traffic stops.
Attorney John Thompson, president of the Delaware State Sportsmen's Association and a proponent of the bill, wonders whether officers using the database would approach cars registered to permit holders with an unwarranted expectation of violence or with guns drawn.
"If that's what their training is going to be, I'm concerned about that," he said.
Other amendments would require annual shooting accuracy tests and prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons into churches, doctor's offices, health care facilities, bars, senior centers, nursing homes and, for nonemployees, government buildings.
Under yet another amendment, a permit holder would be deemed to have given implied consent for authorities to test his blood, breath or urine for drugs or alcohol if an officer believed he was carrying a concealed weapon while under the influence.
"We're going to fight each amendment," vowed Thompson, who believes the amendments are designed to kill the bill or to make the process of obtaining a permit and complying with the rules so onerous that people won't bother.
Rep. Melanie Marshall, sponsor of many of the amendments, said she believes the current concealed-carry law is working, and that the bill could result in increased threats to public safety.
"There's a lot of things we need to explore if we're going to go to a 'shall-issue' state," said Marshall, D-Bear.
Under current Delaware law, a Superior Court judge "may" issue a concealed weapon permit to a person who meets eligibility requirements and demonstrates that he or she has a need to carry a concealed weapon.
The proposed legislation, similar to laws on the books in more than 30 other states, maintains the eligibility requirements but does not require a person seeking a permit to give a reason. Instead of having the discretion to approve or deny a permit, the bill says that a judge "shall" issue the permit if the applicant meets the eligibility criteria. Judges who deny permits would have to state their reasons in writing.
The current eligibility criteria for permit applicants include being at least 21 years old and of "good moral character," obtaining references from five citizens who live in the same county and completing a certified gun safety course.
Thompson said a provision in the bill prohibiting people from carrying concealed weapons into schools was added to satisfy concerns of the attorney general's office. State prosecutor Steve Wood declined to comment on the bill but said the attorney general's office has been concerned that Delaware, unlike other states, does not expressly prohibit the possession of deadly weapons on school property.
Seizing on the proposed restriction for schools, Marshall added several of her own.
"I'm just taking that thought, that logic, by the bill sponsors, and I'm extending it a little bit," she said.
Members of the Delaware Police Chiefs Council, who spoke out against the bill at last month's committee hearing, support many of the amendments.
"These are not unrealistic amendments when you compare it to other states," said New Castle police chief Kevin McDerby.
McDerby said the police chiefs support an amendment to prohibit concealed weapons not just inside schools, but at functions on school property as well. He noted, for example, that the bill as written would prohibit concealed weapons at basketball games, but not football games.
Other key amendments for the police chiefs include those regarding the inclusion of permit holders in the criminal justice database and the implied consent for alcohol and drug testing, similar to that given in obtaining a driver's license.
Bill sponsor Rep. Deborah Hudson, R-Wilmington, does not object to some of the amendments and has sponsored one herself that would make criminal background checks for permit applicants mandatory, rather than at the court's discretion, as the current law reads.
But Hudson and Thompson are concerned that many of the amendments are aimed at changing the existing law, rather than the bill itself.
"Some of the amendments are getting off the subject and probably should be stand-alone bills," said Hudson, who expects a lengthy debate when the bill is brought to the House floor, possibly as early as Thursday.
"It will be a long day the day we do that," she said."
Seems like a strange position to take. Most people (judges included) feel just the opposite...FELONS SHOULD NOT BE ARMED!!!
Shooters wear eye and ear protection to protect themselves from possible hazards at the range. I wonder if the Brady Bunch wears nose plugs so they won't get sick from the smell of what they are shoveling?
