The Missouri House passed a bill that would allow 21 year olds to obtain concealed carry permits.
Much of the House debate focused on a controversial amendment to the bill that would allow concealed weapons on college campuses.
Proponents of the bill say it extends Second Amendment rights to law-abiding 21 year olds who have undergone training and background checks as part of the permitting process.
Republican Denny Hoskins says prohibiting concealed carry on campuses deters only law-abiding citizens, not criminals.
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| Description: "The murderous perpetrator at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois that went into the college campus and just starting shooting up innocents - do you think that they were worried about getting their conceal and carry license and getting a background check and going through all the proper steps to be properly trained and educated in order to have conceal and carry? |
Critics, like Democrat Margo McNeil, says college students should not have guns on campus.
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| Description: "College students are not known particularly for following the law. So an example is their use of alcohol prior to the appropriate age. So the idea that only those people who are qualified to carry a concealed weapon would do so is specious." |
Democrat Jason Kander voted against the bill.
He says that the state should not create a universal policy for concealed carry on college campuses.
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| Description: "I am a believer in local control and I believe that university presidents have a right to make this determination." |
Despite opposition, the bill passed the Missouri House on the second anniversary of the Virginia Tech shootings by a 2 to 1 margin.
From the State Capitol, I'm Elizabeth Billingsley.
Intro: Missouri House passes bill allowing 21 year olds to carry concealed weapons on college campuses.
On the second anniversary of the Virginia Tech shootings, the Missouri House voted to remove the prohibition against carrying concealed weapons on college campuses.
The bill also lowers the minimum age to obtain a concealed weapon permit from 23 to 21.
Representative Brian Munzlinger sponsored the amendment to allow concealed weapons on college campuses, despite criticisms from several university presidents.
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| Description: "I'm a little bit disturbed that some of the campus administrators, they're actually fearing the wrong people. They're fearing law-abiding citizens and not the dangerous criminals of this state." |
Critics say the bill ties the hands of university administrators to keep their campuses safe.
From the State Capitol, I'm Elizabeth Billingsley.
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