Cracks in the wall:Gun owners rally to support bills

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Gun owners rally to support bills

By MAGGIE ROTERMUND, State Capital Bureau
March 1, 2001

KELLEY
MCCALL/Associated Press
Spectators watch a rally from the second
floor of the state Capitol rotunda Wednesday.
Hundreds of gun owners and enthusiasts came
to lobby lawmakers and build support.

JEFFERSON CITY – Handguns attracted much
attention in Missouri’s
statehouse Wednesday as the state Senate
debated a bill to force St. Louis to
drop its lawsuit against handgun
manufacturers.

Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder, R-Cape
Girardeau, introduced the
bill, which would prohibit state and local
governments from suing firearm or
ammunition manufacturers.

“Tobacco was unpopular. Guns are unpopular.
Who’s next?” Kinder asked
Sen. Ken Jacob, D-Columbia, one of only a
handful of Senate opponents to
Kinder’s bill.

“Alcohol,” Jacob replied. Again Kinder asked,
“Who’s next? The fast-food
industry for making people obese?”

On the opening day of the debate, Kinder’s
main opposition came from Sen.
John Schneider, D-St. Louis County. Schneider
offered five amendments
during the morning session. All were shot
down by margins of about 4-to-1.

“This is a dangerous bill. It has been
written by very, very adept people. It is
the slickest language,” Schneider said.

Jacob joined Schneider’s opposition, offering
three amendments, all of which
were defeated. Jacob argued that the issue
was about letting citizens have their
day in court.

St. Louis is one of several cities that
have filed lawsuits against the handgun
manufacturing industry, charging that
their products have contributed to the
homicide and assault rates of urban
America.

The Senate adjourned for the day without
taking a final vote on the proposal.
Votes on several amendments showed that the
bill has overwhelming support
in the Senate.

Senate debate began on the same day the
National Rifle Association held a
rally at the statehouse to support
legislation to allow Missourians to carry
concealed weapons. Hundreds gathered in the
Capital rotunda Wednesday
morning to garner support from legislators.

“I own a gun and at times I carry a gun – and
I’m a Democrat,” said House
Speaker Jim Kreider, D-Nixa. “Missouri
Democrats are fiercely independent. We still believe in the traditions and
freedoms that built this country.”

Although Missourians narrowly voted down a
concealed weapons proposition in 1999, the issue has been reintroduced by
the House Majority Leader, Rep. Wayne Crump, D-Jefferson County.

Under Crump’s bill, a statewide vote would
not be required to make carrying concealed weapons legal.