The Virginia Senate today approved two controversial House of Delegates gun bills that will allow permit holders to carry concealed handguns into bars and non-permit holders to conceal their firearms in cars.
House Bill 505 (bars) and House Bill 885 (cars) were essentially identical to two Senate-sponsored bills that had already passed the chamber and were approved by the House. All four bills now head to the desk of Gov. Bob McDonnell, who has indicated he will likely sign the legislation.
The Senate votes on the House bills were split, with several rural Democrats siding with Republicans. House Bill 505 passed 25-15, while House Bill 885 passed 24-16. Democrats hold a 22-18 majority in the 40-member Senate.
Despite having already passed Senate versions of the gun bills, some lawmakers spoke out against the legislation before the floor vote.
Sen. David Marsden, D-Fairfax, called the bill allowing guns to be kept concealed in locked containers in cars “ill-advised public policy” that would increase the likelihood of firearms falling into the wrong hands.
“That’s how your children are going to get your guns,“ Marsden said.
Sen. Jill Holtzman Vogel, R-Fauquier, who sponsored the Senate version of the bill, countered that locking firearms in a vehicle out of public view “is a much safer way to transport a weapon.“
Senators also approved House bills that make the murder of auxiliary police officers and fire marshals with law enforcement powers death penalty-eligible crimes.
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