Posted on 04/13/2011 6:25:40 AM PDT by marktwain
The Assembly Public Safety Committee approved on party lines today two controversial gun bills that failed last session, including legislation targeting the "Open Carry" protest movement.
Assembly Bill 144, by Assemblyman Anthony Portantino, D-La Cañada Flintridge, would make it a crime to openly carry an unloaded handgun in public. The bill language contains a number of exceptions, including exemptions for peace officers, military gatherings, gun shows and hunting.
Former Democratic Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña introduced similar legislation last year in response to reports of gun brandishing people gathering in public places to protest gun-control laws. An amended version of the bill failed to make it out of the lower house before the end of the legislative session.
Portantino said the practice of open carry has "created an increase in problematic instances," alarming and frightening passersby and needlessly draining law enforcement resources when officers are called to respond to reports of armed people.
"Open carrying of weapons is something that belongs on a Hollywood movie set, not on Main Street or Starbucks. You don't need a sidearm in order to buy a cheeseburger," he said.
Opponents countered that the ban would leave law-abiding citizens with no option for exercising their Second Amendment rights if they are also denied a permit to carry a concealed weapon. They argued the open carry movement has not led to any altercations that would merit the ban.
"Show me any instances where there has been a problem where the person carrying the arms openly has been arrested for any reason. They don't have any," Ed Worley of the National Rifle Association said. "It makes people uncomfortable, but that's the nature of a free society."
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.sacbee.com ...
More reasons not to live in California and from the people and businesses leaving that state it’s obvious the citizens are agreeing.
Sounds like a court case that could go all the way up the chain to the Supremes. If you don’t issue conceal carry and you don’t allow open carry, are you being denied your right to bear arms? I think so.
I mean, at some point, once every gun is banned, and all metal, and anything that can burn, and pointed objects are all banned, and all clubs, and all hands and fists, and people and animals and trees are all banned outright, don't you run out of laws you can pass?
Or do you just keep passing new laws anyways?
One other thing, firearms enthusiasts in California, might I suggest a move to Pennsylvania. There is no law on the books concerning open carry, therefore it is legal. You can get a conceal carry license for $25 (cost of processing) for five years. No one who is allowed to own a firearm is denied the license. The house just passed a castle doctrine law and by the summer I suspect we’ll have castle doctrine with a Republican Senate and a Conservative governor. The NRA is having it’s annual convention in Pittsburgh at the end of the month. Pa has it’s own problems, but respects the 2nd amendment.
While I don’t agree with open carry, if the state won’t allow concealed carry, what the hell is the alternative, other than move out of the state and to somewhere more supportive?
It’s easy to ReConquista a state that is disarmed....
I am actually hoping this will pass for exactly the reason you bring up. If I cannot open carry, and I cannot get a CCW then my right to bear arms has absolutely been infringed upon. This will open up the CCW floodgate in CA....wait did I just say that?!?
Unless making a movie is another of the exceptions, those Hollywood movie sets are toast -- at least so far as action films, Westerns, crime movies, cop dramas and war movies are concerned.
I beg to differ.
I have no standing in this matter nor any expertise but, with a mind uncluttered with the facts, let me suggest that it’s now time for Atlas to shrug in California. The productive people should leave and let the place collapse while the remaining leeches try to tax themselves into prosperity after they’ve disarmed themselves to face the Mexican onslaught known as undocumented immigration
[facepalm] Statist response to people protesting too many gun laws? Why, pass MORE, of course! So explain to me again how all the people protesting in Egypt or wherever this week proves their government should go? Sounds to me from liberal logic like what they need is more of the same.
And what is the NRA doing about this?
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