Well the bill passed committee this afternoon. This is the first meeting I've attended and I can say that it's pretty sad when only 12 public speakers show up. 10 including myself were in opposition and 2 were in favor. A motion was made to table but did not receive majority vote. It passed with 7 votes.
There seems to be many loopholes in this bill. At some point this bill had exempted CCDW permit holders but it was pulled out. The only people exempt are LEO and Security. The gun can not be on school property outside of a vehicle, period. One question I raised was how can you lock your gun in the trunk without taking it outside the vehicle? The moment your foot touches the pavement in a school parking lot, you are committing a felony.
Another question asked by a rep was how do you know where the school property boundary is? Is it at the center of the road, curb, sidewalk, grass? The chairman answered grass, and stated that it is acceptable to carry along the sidewalk in front of a school. In most older schools, this may be true, however I can tell you that most walking paths and sidewalks constructed today are not located within the state's or municipality's right-of-way, and are in fact located on the school's property, within an easement. Under this bill, you could be arrested for walking your dogs down the sidewalk with your licensed concealed weapon on you if the sidewalk is on school property. You could also be arrested for getting out of your car and putting your weapon in a gun safe in the trunk.
Another interesting subject was brought up and that was, what is considered school property? Apparently, this bill extends to property not actually owned by the school, but property being used, leased, or rented. For example, if a school in Wilmington uses an adjacent state park/playground during recess, this park becomes school property. If the Bob Carpenter Center is being rented for a high school graduation, this becomes school property. If a church is being used as a school (apparently there are schools attached to churches in DE), that would be considered school property during times in which students are using the "borrowed" property. These examples all came up during the meeting and were acknowledged to be true by the committee.
We need more people to turn out for the senate vote and for people to contact their representatives and senators. This bill has many loopholes that need to be addressed and CCDW holders need to be exempt. Either the State judge acknowledges permit holders as "not a threat to society" or they do. It's as simple as that. What danger to we pose? My weapon is more safe on my person, secured in a holster, than it is sitting in my car in a parking lot just begging to be stolen...
Jon