Concealed handgun rights discussed

Concealed handguns could be carried by permit holders at private schools under legislation heard by the Judiciary Committee Jan. 22.

LB184, introduced by Crete Sen. Laura Ebke, would remove private, denominational and parochial schools and private colleges from the list of places concealed handguns are prohibited in Nebraska. The bill would allow those institutions to authorize security personnel to carry handguns on their properties only after written notice is given to students and their parents or guardians.

Only individuals with concealed handgun permits would be allowed to carry guns on those properties, according to the bill.

Ebke said the bill would give private schools the option of arming their personnel, something Nebraska law already allows churches to do. Security teams at churches with attached or nearby schools currently are unable to provide the same level of protection during the week as they do on Sundays.

“This bill is a reasonable solution to offer some form of protection without having to resort to hiring less discrete police protection,” Ebke said.

Rod Moeller, president of the Nebraska Firearms Owners Association, spoke in favor of the bill. Like churches, he said, private and parochial schools should be able to devise security policies that protect children.

“It’s a scary world,” he said. “It’s up to us on how to respond.”

Dick Clark, security team coordinator for Lincoln’s Temple Baptist Church, also testified in support of LB184, saying it would give institutions additional security options to consider. Armed staff make institutions safer, he said, because offenders in mass shootings typically continue until confronted.

“Killers choose to keep killing until someone stops them,” Clark said.

Courtney Lawton, a public school teacher and graduate teaching assistant at the University of Nebraska—Lincoln opposed the bill. She said the training required for a concealed handgun permit is inadequate because people learn how to defend only themselves, not others.

Further, she said, allowing guns on campuses puts students and teachers in danger because some mass shootings are committed by those who have obtained guns legally.

“A good guy with a gun often becomes a bad guy with a gun,” she said.

Amanda Gailey, representing Nebraskans Against Gun Violence, agreed with Lawton that the minimum eight hours of training required to acquire a concealed handgun permit is inadequate. Speaking in opposition to the bill, she pointed out that 2,100 hours of training are required to be a barber in Nebraska.

“Gun legislation ought to protect the people,” she said. “This is a great bill for the gun lobby, but a bad bill for our state.”

The committee took no immediate action on the bill.