INDIANAPOLIS (AP)
-- Several police organizations are arguing against a proposal that would
have Indiana join a dozen other states that don’t require a license to carry
a handgun in public.
A legislative
committee met Tuesday to begin reviewing the proposal that has failed the
last two years in the Republican-dominated Legislature.
Law enforcement
officials told the panel that the current law allows Indiana State Police to
vet people who want to carry a gun. State police Maj. Mike White says about
3,000 people a year are denied permits because of criminal history or mental
health issues.
Republican state
Rep. Jim Lucas of Seymour is pushing for repealing the gun permit law,
saying that law-abiding people shouldn’t have to get state permission to
carry out their constitutional right to bear arms.