Photo by Daniel Weber
RALEIGH – North Carolina lawmakers have approved a bill greatly expanding where concealed handguns are legally allowed.
The Republican-backed bill approved by both the House and Senate on Tuesday allows concealed-carry permit holders to take firearms into bars and restaurants and other places where alcohol is served as long as the owner doesn’t expressly forbid it.
The measure will also allow concealed-carry permit holders to store weapons in locked cars on the campus of any public school or university. Guns will also now be allowed on greenways, playgrounds and other public recreation areas.
The final bill dropped a controversial provision that would have repealed the long-standing law requiring a background check and permit issued by county sheriffs for handgun purchases.
The measure now heads to Republican Gov. Pat McCrory’s desk.
Is it not ok to carry a gun where our kids play because we are concerned that they would be shot? Why then is it ok to bring a gun to high school, where we sadly read the news a every year about kids getting shot? And why do we need to have guns in bars — this isn’t tombstone.
To Carrboro and Chapel Hill bar and restaurant owners: Please help us take a stand. Expressly forbid concealed weapons in your establishments.