Not Free  |   Home  |   Texans Get Concealed Permit to Bypass Security Lines

God Bless Texas

Hey, O… how soon before we see this in Madison?  

Everyone from lobbyists to lawyers and journalists is rushing to get permits to carry guns inside the Texas Capitol, where legislators already often tote pistols in boots and purses or stow them away inside their desks.

A unique loophole in a new security procedure means a gun permit is like a special-access pass into the domed building, allowing people who are certified to carry a gun to bypass lines at the metal detectors that were set up after a shooting incident earlier this year.

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There’s now a frenzy for folks to get trained and licensed to carry a firearm, especially before the legislative session begins in January. It’s not required that people have a gun to enter the Capitol through the express lane. Merely holding a valid permit, and presenting it at the entrance, will get them expedited entry.

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Texas law allows people to carry a weapon if they have a permit and as long as the gun is concealed. A separate lane for license-holders had to be created so gun-toters could enter without having to pull out their weapons - or unconceal them - along with their wallets and keys.

Guns were previously allowed in the Capitol. With the arrival of the metal detectors, permit-holders now get their licenses scanned to make sure they are in good standing and their bags are put through an X-ray scanner.

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Lobbyist Michelle Wittenburg, who recently received her gun permit and has been signing up her colleagues so they can do the same, said the security at the Capitol is still strong because permit-holders aren’t the ones who would pose any threat.

“If you do have a CHL (gun permit) then that shows you have gone through a background check and you’ve been vetted, so to speak,” Wittenburg said. “I don’t think those are the people that are going to cause your problems in the Capitol.”

Posted by Jed at 1736 hrs
Firearms + Politics + Politics - Texas

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