Posted on 04/18/2015 6:14:11 AM PDT by Zakeet
Texas is poised to become the largest state in the U.S. to allow citizens to openly carry handguns, a change long sought by gun-rights activists.
The Texas House of Representatives on Friday voted 96-35 to allow residents with concealed-handgun licenses to openly carry their guns in public in holsters. A similar open-carry measure passed the Texas Senate last month; the two open-carry bills must be squared before being sent to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who has indicated support for the idea.
In contrast to its reputation for being permissive on firearms, Texas is one of six states, including California, New York and Florida, that currently bars citizens from openly carrying handguns. People who want to carry handguns in public on their person must obtain concealed-weapons permits and keep the weapons hidden.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Finally!
Oh No !
Another Chicago !
/s
Strange how Texas has trailed on this issue.
Oh well, it is done.
Illinois bans open carry as well. But we have a surprisingly good CCL law. I’d prefer CC of course but one takes what one can get.
We'll try again for Constitutional Carry in the next session. There were some shenanigans perpetrated to defeat it this time. I think CC will eventually be the law in Texas.
In Michigan we have concealed carry with a permit and Open carry without a permit. Then there are the screwy alterations that don’t make any sense.
A concealed carrier may carry in schools but they must carry openly. This has led to Ann Arbor schools illegally banning guns in schools by designating them to be a disturbance when the real disturbance is panicky people. They’re going to lose the case and know it but they’re pushing ahead anyway.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3279703/posts
Better idea: do away with the requirement for license to carry completely
There are about 4 liberal trolls pounding the comments on that article. They can barely keep up. lol. They must be getting paid.
I am not a fan of open carry unless I am out on the farm, in the wilderness or hunting. But to each his own. It should be a free country.
Agreed. If we want to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous criminals we need to keep dangerous criminals locked up. Registration only collects info on the law abiding.
Don't know if you're aware, but we got a change in the CHL law in the previous session to prevent prosecution for "open carry" in just such a situation.
No more worry about "brandishment" charges on a windy day.
>> Strange how Texas has trailed on this issue.
The reasons are arcane, and trace back to Reconstruction-era politics intending to keep blacks from arming themselves.
I’m happy it’s finally getting resolved though.
>> I am not a fan of open carry unless I am out on the farm, in the wilderness or hunting. But to each his own. It should be a free country.
My sentiments exactly.
Gun control in Michigan (and most other places) can be traced to keeping guns out of the hands of blacks.
In Michigan it came from the Ossian Sweet case in the 20s. Sweet defended himself from a mob trying to force him out of their “white” Detroit neighborhood and 2 men were killed. Sweet was acquitted of murder and bills calling for gun boards and registration began hitting the state legislature immediately.
What took so long?!
“Strange how Texas has trailed on this issue.”
We’re a state that has 62-65% of both of its legislative house Republican, yet it is a FEDERAL CASE to get anything conservative done. Susanna Martinez, governor of New Mexico, not exactly a bright red state, just signed a bill that effective ends asset forfeiture, at least at the state level (where it mainly takes place). No one in Texas seems to even know it’s a problem here. Not to mention our Dream Act...not going well to get rid of that.
But the rut of the problem is former governor Perry and his cronies. They bottled up nearly everything conservative, and loaded up the legislature with Establishment types. We FINALLY got rid of two of them, Perry himself, and the Senate leader Dewhurst (our Linsey Gram), but our State House still elected a total LEFT-WINGER as their speaker, and it is still a bitch to get anything through. Even this open-carry is watered down greatly from what other states have.
It is sickening, but it is at least improving now.
Don't know if you're aware, but we got a change in the CHL law in the previous session to prevent prosecution for "open carry" in just such a situation. No more worry about "brandishment" charges on a windy day.Yes, I followed that development and was very pleased it passed in Texas. Preventing prosecution for brandishment for an inadvertent uncovering of the handgun was a good step in the right direction for the gun owner.
Avoiding prosecution is one thing, but I'm thinking that when eventually all of the general public becomes aware of an open carry handgun law in Texas, there will be fewer and fewer cases where a customer, seeing a concealed firearm uncovered or printing, panics and rushes to the store manager frightened by the "scary man with a gun." That is my hope.
In MASS if you have a LTC you can carry open. I have never seen anyone do it outside a gun store. The local police told me if I do, be prepared to have a lot of people call the cops and report a man with a gun. And they don’t need that hassle.
I was frankly surprised when I found out Texas did not have open carry. Here in VA we have had open carry since the 2nd Amendment was ratified. Glad they’re joining the free states.
Winning back a RIGHT compromised by corrupt post-Civil War politicians.
I can see them boys in Houston trying to outdo each other with the biggest gun like they do their Pick Up Trucks.
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