On February 28th a bill to allow concealed carry on Idaho college campuses passed out of committee on an “11 to 3 vote” and now goes to the full House for floor debate.
The bill passed the Idaho senate earlier in February.
According to the AP, “the measure would allow retired enforcement officers and those with Idaho’s new enhanced concealed carry permit to bring their firearms onto campus.”
Bryan Lovell is a Bonneville County Sheriff’s Deputy and president of the Fraternal Order of Police and he supports the measure as a means of recognizing the right to self-defense. Said Lovell: “There are a lot of concealed carry weapons permit holders out there, and the reason they get that is because they want to protect themselves. They don’t want to be caught in a fishbowl if there is an active shooter.”
Rep. John Gannon (D-Boise) “was one of the three Democrats on the committee to vote against the bill.” He argued that Republicans were pushing it through too quickly and not listening to opposition voices.
But Republicans like Rep. Ken Andrus (R-Lava Hot Springs) argued that it was time to do something so that people on campuses “could protect themselves against violent crimes.”
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins
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