Lawmakers overrode 13 vetoes Wednesday while adding to Nixon’s record as the most overridden governor in Missouri history, a distinction made possible by an era of extreme political division in the Capitol. It also makes a change to the so-called castle doctrine to allow visitors to a home the same ability to use deadly force on intruders.
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Stand Your Ground provisions came under heavy scrutiny by Democrats throughout the country after George Zimmerman was acquitted in the February 26, 2012, shooting death of Trayvon Martin. “In essence, the bill is created to strengthen the gun rights of law-abiding Missourians by allowing them to carry a concealed weapon without a permit”.
“The basis of this whole bill is that it allows law-abiding citizens to protect themselves and their families”, Republican sponsor Sen.
Senate Bill 656, will allow all law-abiding Missourians to carry a concealed weapon without obtaining a permit. “The targets in our area are black boys, not pheasants”.
The NRA called the approval of the new gun law “a great day for freedom in Missouri”. “The legislature stood strong for the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens by overriding Gov. Nixon’s misguided veto”, the statement quoted Chris W. Cox, executive director of NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action. But, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, county sheriffs will now have a harder time denying people permits over red flags in background checks. “Despite the best efforts of Michael Bloomberg and out-of-state gun control groups to defeat the override vote, their agenda was rejected”.
Sen. Munzlinger, the omnibus bill’s sponsor, echoed those talking points prior to the veto override.
In his veto letter, Nixon stated that the bill would undo a decade of bipartisan efforts to craft and update Missouri’s hide carry laws. “So, hopefully, this legislation will strengthen our Second Amendment rights in Missouri, and will be a step in the right direction for the state”. A 2014 study found that since those laws were repealed, the state’s homicide rate has increased by more than 15 percent, as the national rate has dropped 11 percent.
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“I’m exhausted of the fact that we have disproportionate numbers of African-Americans who are dying”, he added. (The Missouri Supreme Court declared its 2006 voter-ID law unconstitutional.) Even if the amendment passes, the law could face a court challenge, despite being less restrictive than some other states’ voter-ID laws.
