Georgia House OKs concealed, loaded guns in cars w/o a permit

[Doondoo]

The Georgia House jumped back into the long-running debate over gun rights Monday, approving legislation that would allow motorists to conceal loaded firearms in their cars without a permit.

Proponents say House Bill 89 would let motorists keep firearms in easy reach to defend themselves against carjackers and other criminals. But critics say the measure would circumvent the state's concealed handgun background check requirements and endanger police making traffic stops.

.......

The 565-member Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police opposes the bill.

"Our association and its members strongly support Georgians' Second Amendment rights," Frank V. Rotondo, the association's executive director, wrote in a letter to lawmakers Monday. "However, the effect of this bill would extend those rights to an absurd level and have the ultimate effect of occasioning more killings of both police officers, and innocent civilians."


http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/legis07/stories/2007/02/13/0213metlegguns.html

[terip64]

1. kick and welcome to DU

[benEzra]

2. I don't see this as a big deal--most states allow this, IIRC.

Anybody who would shoot a police officer doesn't CARE if it's illegal for the gun to be out of plain sight, and if someone cares enough about the law to follow the plain sight rule, they presumably care enough about the law not to shoot an officer...

My state of NC has a "plain sight" rule like I assume Georgia does now (i.e., it's OK to have a pistol lying on the seat or on the dash, but not out of plain sight). I'm sure NC criminals don't comply.

It's hard to say if this will pass, though.

[westerebus]

3. Why bother?

If you already went through a back ground check to purchase a hand gun, its' not like you can't have it in your car. Better to have a concealed permit so you always have the option on when and where to carry. Besides,Georgia has a "pro" carry law to begin with.

[noahmijo]

4. The type of person who would knowingly shoot at police officers or "civilians" wouldn't care about

concealed laws.


What the hell does he mean by "civilians?" would that be persons in the path of the shooter whom are not targets of the shooter? Like I said a person who would carelessly or purposefully fire upon "civilians" isn't gonna give a shit about what's written in the book of laws-that should be pretty obvious.



Enough trying to make MORE gun laws. That's not the answer. Try enforcing the ones we have now first. Then maybe try going after the criminals who are actually shooting at police officers and "civilians" instead of trying to pass more bullshit blanket laws that do absolutely nothing to target the true problem.

Anybody with common sense knows that the type of person who would carry a concealed weapon and falls under the category of the type that you'd want to see nabbed under this law won't be simply caught at some gun inspection checkpoint and then later be made an example of on the nightly news. No that person is going to be discovered when he/she is done firing upon their intended targets and no written law will stop that person. Only enforcement and actual investigations you know police work (which today seems to be an oxymoron which is why many citizens tend to take matters into their own hands when it comes to self defense regardless of their lack of training and knowledge of the subject) will be conducive to creating a safer environment. And if you want to argue this point community awareness and the like.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

5. Welcome to DU

this law doesn't make sense. This would mean a criminal could have a concealed weapon in his car and the cops could not bring that person in, even though they had reports said car was casing an area. Now I guess they would have to wait until someone was robbed or assaulted at gunpoint before making an arrest.

I'm all for bearing arms, but within reason!

[benEzra]

6. If a CRIMINAL has a weapon in the car,

then they can be arrested and charged with being a criminal in possession of a gun.

If a NON-CRIMINAL has a weapon in the car, the police shouldn't be able to arrest them for merely having a weapon, IMO. They can run the plates, run a check for a criminal record and outstanding warrants, etc. to ensure they're clean.

FWIW, most states do allow the law-abiding to do this, without problems. It's not a big deal.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

8. Thank you for pointing out

that I wasn't clear in my post (that happens when you are late for work in the morning and are typing realllly fast). What I meant instead of criminal was a suspect, possibly a person with no previous criminal record, who is acting in a suspicious way. Seeing a gun in a car after answering a 911 call of an alleged threat--if it isn't illegal to have it there, what can the police do, especially if it is the caller's word against the person in the car? I've been in a situation like this-his word against hers, in this case--and it was scary, because the police basically told me there was nothing they could do, nothing they could hold the man on, until he did something.

I have not heard of any states allowing a person to carry an unregisterd concealed weapon in a car. And in this time of "terror" why would they? Sorry, it still doesn't compute--and I live where people have guns, I have relatives who own guns.

[catgirl]

7. Without a permit?

That's scary.