EDMOND — Open carry advocates soon may have an ally in the Governor’s Mansion, and have faith the state’s future CEO will, as promised, sign authorizing legislation.
Citing concerns such as an increase in crime, groups like the Brady Campaign and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence oppose open carry, the act of publicly carrying a firearm in plain sight. Proponents note that criminals usually conceal their weapons.
In a 2008 case, District of Columbia v. Heller, in striking down a Washington, D.C., ban on individuals having handguns in their homes, the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that the Second Amendment establishes an individual right to keep and bear arms for self-defense and hunting.
During the 2010 legislative session Gov. Brad Henry vetoed House Bill 3354, by state Rep. Rex Duncan, R-Sand Springs, which would have allowed individuals with permits to carry concealed handguns to display their weapons in plain sight.
At the time, Henry cited safety concerns expressed by law enforcement.
Duncan said the bill would let Oklahomans openly carry a weapon if they have obtained a handgun license/concealed carry permit. He cited state records showing that nearly 36,000 concealed carry licenses were issued in 2009, and just 105 were revoked that year. Nearly 97,000 Oklahomans had a concealed carry permit as of May 2010.
The bill passed the House on a 74-24 vote before heading to the governor.
During the campaign leading up the Nov. 2 general election, Mary Fallin, R-Deer Creek, cited Henry’s veto and her intentions to expand gun ownership rights in the state.
“Gov. Brad Henry vetoed an ‘open carry’ law that would have permitted responsible gun owners to carry weapons without concealing them,” Fallin said via a post on her campaign Web site. “When I am governor, I will sign that bill into law and send a message that in Oklahoma, we mean business when it comes to the Second Amendment.”
State Rep. Jason Murphey, R-Guthrie, sponsored HB 1083, a campus carry bill that was held up in the House Public Safety Committee in 2009. It would have permitted faculty members, certified and Self Defense Act license holders to carry concealed firearms on college campus property. The National Rifle Association called it “an important expansion” of Oklahoma’s right to carry firearms.
Murphey, who represents House District 31, which includes part of north Edmond, said during the coming legislative session his primary focus will center on his duties as chair of the House Government Modernization Committee.
However, if a House sponsor is needed for Senate-drafted open carry legislation he would be glad to do so, Murphey said.
When Fallin is sworn in, open carry in Oklahoma will only be a matter of time, he said.
“I think it’s pretty much a done deal,” Murphey said. “If the governor is going to sign it it’s going to be hard to stop it this time around.”
Oklahoma open carry petition founder Russ Cook said having more Republicans in crucial offices will have a positive effect on the issue. Around the country citizens want rights returned to the people, and Oklahomans are no different, Cook said.
Cook said he would love to see early momentum toward an open carry bill for the 2011 session, and he would be contacting prospective sponsors, including Duncan.
Cook said it’s discouraging to hear talk about how people cannot be trusted with carrying guns openly when history proves that in states with such laws crime decreases.
Only seven states — Oklahoma, Florida, South Carolina, Texas, Arkansas and New York — do not have open carry laws on the books, according to OpenCarry.org.
John Pierce, co-founder and spokesman for OpenCarry.org, said he welcomes the election results and predicted that open carry would be legalized in Oklahoma in the next legislative session, and probably in Florida as well. Then South Carolina, Texas and Arkansas would likely follow suit, Pierce said.
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