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SNIP
Texas' open carry ban linked to 'Wild West' days, similar to more liberal states
Posted: April 13, 2014 - 5:39pm
By Enrique Rangel
AUSTIN BUREAU
AUSTIN — Thanks to its frontier heritage and the number of Texans with concealed handgun permits — more than 600,000 as of last year — Texas is considered a gun-friendly state.. . .
Although interpretations of state laws vary among pro-gun groups such as the National Rifle Association and Open.Carry.org, carrying firearms in full view is specifically allowed in 17 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Most others let local governments decide whether to impose restrictions.
However, Texas and five other states — California, Florida, Illinois, New York and South Carolina — as well as the District of Columbia, don’t allow open carry, according to Open.Carry.org, a website created 10 years ago to focus on “the right to openly carry properly holstered handguns in daily American life.”
“It’s hard to understand that Southern states like Texas, Florida and South Carolina are in the same group with California, Illinois, New York and the District of Columbia,” co-founder Mike Stollenwerk said in a phone interview. “It’s really strange.”
However, the attention the issue is getting again is encouraging, and open carry legislation will finally pass in next year’s session, Stollenwerk, a former Texas resident, predicted.
. . .
SNIP
Texas' open carry ban linked to 'Wild West' days, similar to more liberal states
Posted: April 13, 2014 - 5:39pm
By Enrique Rangel
AUSTIN BUREAU
AUSTIN — Thanks to its frontier heritage and the number of Texans with concealed handgun permits — more than 600,000 as of last year — Texas is considered a gun-friendly state.. . .
Although interpretations of state laws vary among pro-gun groups such as the National Rifle Association and Open.Carry.org, carrying firearms in full view is specifically allowed in 17 states, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Most others let local governments decide whether to impose restrictions.
However, Texas and five other states — California, Florida, Illinois, New York and South Carolina — as well as the District of Columbia, don’t allow open carry, according to Open.Carry.org, a website created 10 years ago to focus on “the right to openly carry properly holstered handguns in daily American life.”
“It’s hard to understand that Southern states like Texas, Florida and South Carolina are in the same group with California, Illinois, New York and the District of Columbia,” co-founder Mike Stollenwerk said in a phone interview. “It’s really strange.”
However, the attention the issue is getting again is encouraging, and open carry legislation will finally pass in next year’s session, Stollenwerk, a former Texas resident, predicted.
. . .
