Gun rights advocates are opposing a bill that would allow municipalities to prohibit firearms at voting places and governmental meetings.
The bill’s sponsor, state Sen. Cathy Breen, a Democrat from Falmouth, says the proposal is meant to give communities the option to ban firearms, which could intimidate some people or escalate tensions during public meetings.
But Turner resident Jamie Robinson says such prohibitions will only punish law-abiding gun owners, while making the public less safe.
“Evil people do not care about the law. Creating so-called gun-free zones means that only the law-abiding are gun free. It has no effect on the criminal element,” he says.
Poland resident Stanley Tetman told the Legislature’s State and Local Government Committee that the proposal would give municipal workers and elected officials the same protections that exist at the capitol complex, which bars people from bringing firearms into public buildings.
“This is not a gun rights issue. This bill does not prevent anybody from purchasing or possessing a firearm. This is about a local community being able to decide how best to protect its workers,” he says.
Supporters, including the Maine School Management Association, also argued that many elections are held at schools, where firearms are prohibited.
Originally published April 22, 2019 at 3:02 p.m. ET
