Free Republic

Now that South Carolina has officially become the 29th state to adopt Constitutional Carry (and the 28th to have the law formally take effect, since Louisiana's new statute doesn't kick in until July 4th), the state's few pro-gun control voices are ramping up their fearmongering. Everytown for Gun Safety's South Carolina chapter is already predicting the new law will lead to more violence and less safety, while the state's most politically powerful sheriff says he's turning to the Almighty to protect the state from Constitutional Carry's effects. "Law enforcement agencies in South Carolina are bracing for what could happen as...

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry campaigned on a pro-Constitutional Carry platform last fall, and the former Attorney General wasted no time at all to fulfill his campaign promise. Just a little more than two weeks after a permitless carry bill was formally introduced in a special session on crime and public safety, Landry put pen to paper today and officially made concealed carry licenses optional in the Sportsmans Paradise. ""Today, we join 27 other states in passing Constitutional Carry. I promised the folks of Louisiana that I would champion Constitutional Carry into law, and within two months, I have honored that...

The South Carolina Senate passed H. 3594 on February 1, 2024. The bill was passed in the South Carolina House in February of 2023 with a vote of 90 to 30. The Senate added a couple of changes in an amendment to the bill put forward by the president of the Senate, Shane A. Massie. Massie had previously been one of a few Republican South Carolina senators blocking the bill from passage. H. 3594, as amended, goes back to the House for a vote of concurrence with the amendment. The bill passed the Senate on a roll call vote, with...

LOCKHART — Michael Cargill’s commands cut through the air sharply as his license-to-carry students train to shoot at Lone Star Gun Range in Lockhart.“One shot. One shot.”The students load one bullet into their handguns, some brought from home, others rented from Cargill’s gun shop, Central Texas Gun Works. He reminds them to make sure their right thumb is atop their left on the gun, to keep their stances wide and to lean forward.“Fire! Fire! Fire!”If their stances are uneven, if their thumbs are not aligned, Cargill pauses to adjust each student’s positioning. This is the purpose of Cargill’s license-to-carry class:...

On April 19, 2023, at 11:25 a.m., the Nebraska Legislature passed LB 77, the Constitutional Carry bill which Senator Tom Brewer has been diligently working to pass for years. The bill has to be signed by Nebraska Governor (R) Jim Pillen to become law. Governor Pillen has promised he will sign the bill.LB77 incorporates a number of features to make Constitutional Carry in Nebraska a reality. One provision has been a sticking point in getting the bill passed. The bill strengthens the Nebraska preemption statute and eliminates the Omaha and Lincoln requirements to register handguns in those cities. From the...

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed legislation Monday making Florida the 26th constitutional carry state in the Union. This means the majority of states in the USA are constitutional carry. The NRA tweeted: DeSantis’ signature tips US into majority 'constitutional carry' nation with new Florida gun rights law https://t.co/8MtZsg9lyn — Fox News Politics (@foxnewspolitics) April 3, 2023 The Tampa Bay Times reported the new law takes effect July 1, 2023.

TALLAHASSEE - The Florida Senate on Thursday gave final approval to a bill that would allow people to carry guns without concealed-weapons licenses, sending the issue to Gov. Ron DeSantis. The Republican-controlled Senate voted 27-13 almost almost straight party lines to pass the measure (HB 543), with Sen. Ileana Garcia, R-Miami, joining Democrats in opposition. The House approved the bill last week, and DeSantis has pledged to sign it. In nixing a decades-old licensing requirement, the bill would allow people to carry concealed weapons without having to meet requirements such as firearms training and background screening. People carrying weapons would...

Don’t fall for this constitutional carry trap The true purpose behind everybody trying to load up their state laws with sensitive places is not really about prohibiting you from carrying firearms in those places. It's about designating so many areas as sensitive places that it creates only tiny little isolated pockets where you're actually legally allowed to carry, and you can't plausibly do it without technically violating the law dozens of times every single day. Because the instant they stop you for any mundane reason and you happen to be in or near one of those locations you're going to...

The gun control group Newtown Action Alliance is responding to the constitutional carry push in Florida by tweeting that “there is no such thing as ‘constitutional carry.'” Twenty-five states have constitutional carry, and Republicans in Florida and South Carolina are now racing to see which state will be number 26, but Newtown Action Alliance says it does not really exist. Newtown Action Alliance’s tweeted their opinion: Newtown Action Alliance @NewtownAction Just to be clear, there is no such thing as “constitutional carry”. The constitution didn’t give anyone the right to carry guns publicly without permits, background checks, or training. This...

H3594, the South Carolina Constitutional Carry bill, is scheduled to be heard in the Judiciary General Laws subcommittee at 9 AM, Wednesday, February 8, 2023 in the Blatt Building Room 516. If you can't make it to the meeting, you can watch it streaming online at this link or listen to the audio only at this link. Written comments may be emailed to HJudGenLaws@schouse.gov. (More info at the video at the source document)

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Saying gun owners don’t need a government permission slip to protect their God-given rights, Florida’s House speaker proposed legislation Monday to eliminate concealed weapons permits, a move Democrats argue would make a state with a history of horrific mass shootings less safe. Republican leaders, including Gov. Ron DeSantis, have expressed support for the idea, so the bill should not have a problem passing in a legislature with a GOP a super-majority.

Legislation enshrining “constitutional carry” — that is, the legal right to carry a firearm without a government permit — is spreading quickly across the country. Many states have adopted constitutional carry in the past decade, and more are expected to do so in the coming years. Gun control groups unsurprisingly oppose constitutional carry. More surprisingly, so do some police chiefs associations and police unions. They argue that permitless carry increases the danger faced by law enforcement officers. Yet, officer fatalities have trended downward slightly over the past four decades (excepting COVID-19 deaths), despite a growing number of law enforcement officers,...

On October 26, 2022, the New York Times published an article focusing on allegations of increased violence after the state of Texas moved to Constitutional Carry in September of 2021.The author, David Goodman, is fairly careful in his allegations, which consist of one incident where an innocent 9-year-old was killed during a defensive shooting and anecdotes from city sheriffs, police leaders, and district attorneys.However, many read only the headline and a few lines after that. The headline implies large problems with permitless (Constitutional) carry. The first incident is an extremely rare occurrence: the death of an innocent during a justified...

Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) instituted a raft of new gun control regulations including designating Times Square in New York City as a giant gun-free zone. National Rifle Association (NRA) spokeswoman Dana Loesch correctly pointed out that "criminals who depend on guns to commit robberies, rapes, and murders aren't going to obey these restrictions. That's why most mass shootings occur in gun-free zones. A policy that would yield better results is lessening the barriers to citizens arming themselves." Hochul rejected "the erroneous notion that good guys with guns can stop a bad guy with a gun. If heavily armed and well-trained...

A governor’s veto of a Constitutional Carry bill is a setback for Second Amendment supporters and Constitutionalists. A veto is also a signal the hard work of education has mostly been successful. How else would pro 2A bills reach anti-gun Governors’ desks?The Constitutional Carry movement was a dream in the thoughts of Second Amendment and Constitutional activists at the turn of the millennia. Today, half of the United States are members of the Constitutional Carry (permitless) club.During the last eleven years, there have been several governors who vetoed Constitutional Carry bills.This correspondent found 14 vetoes of Constitutional Carry bills. Nine...

According to news sources, in a speech given near Gainsville, Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis responded to a question about Second Amendment rights. From mainstreetdailynews: DeSantis also responded to a question on 2nd Amendment rights, saying Florida would pass a constitutional carry before he left office. WPLG Local 10 out of Fort Lauderdale confirmed DeSantis made the bold promise to Second Amendment supporters and Constitutionalists on Friday morning, April 29. From local10.com:DeSantis made the political promise while speaking near Gainesville on Friday.“I can’t tell you exactly when, but I’m pretty confident that I will be able to sign ‘constitutional carry’ into...

Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday that he will sign a bill allowing constitutional carry in Florida before he leaves the governor’s office. Right now, people need concealed weapons permits to walk around with a gun in Florida. Constitutional carry means that permit requirement goes away.

On Tuesday, April 12, Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia signed SB319, the Constitutional Carry (permitless carry) bill. The bill became effective when the Governor signed the bill. Second Amendment supporters have been attempting to pass Constitutional Carry through the Georgia legislature for years. Governor Kemp pledged support for the measure in 2018. From fox5 atlanta.com:Kemp said the bill is a public safety measure.“SB 319 makes sure that law-abiding Georgians — law-abiding Georgians, including out daughters and your family too — can protect themselves without having the permission of the state government. The constitution of the United States gives us that...

The Constitutional Carry bill for Nebraska, LB 773 has failed to pass cloture on the filibuster. It is dead for 2022. On March 11, 2022, the Nebraska legislature passed LB 773 with the required 33 votes to overcome the filibuster in the State’s unicameral legislature. Nebraska’s only legislative chamber is the Senate. After the bill was assured of passage, three senators switched their votes, presumably to avoid criticism for voting against the bill in the first place.On April 11, LB 773, the Nebraska Constitutional Carry bill failed to pass the vote for closure of the filibuster with 31 votes for,...

Standing outside Gable Sporting Goods in Douglasville, where Gov. Brian Kemp said he bought his daughter Lucy’s first handgun, the governor signed a bill that allows Georgians to carry concealed handguns without first getting a license from the state. Making good on a 2018 campaign promise, Kemp signed Senate Bill 319, referred to by backers as “constitutional carry.”SB 319 allows a “lawful weapons carrier” to carry a concealed handgun everywhere license holders currently are allowed — meaning guns would still be prohibited in places such as the secured areas of airports or government buildings that have security at the entrance,...