Indiana has repealed a law requiring gun owners to carry a permit — and police say it will make their jobs harder by eliminating background checks on people who commit gun crimes.
House Bill 1077 was passed by the state legislature in March, went into effect Friday, and allows anyone over 18 to carry a handgun without a permit. Exceptions to the law include people with felonies, restraining orders against them or a mental illness that makes them dangerous, the Associated Press reported.
Police advocates told the AP that the permits helped identify dangerous individuals with guns.
“We have to go through one or two more steps before we can do a criminal investigation,” state police spokesman Capt. Ron Galaviz told the AP. “We can’t necessarily do it over there on the side of the road.”
Scott County Sheriff Jerry Goodin told WDRB the law will make people afraid in public.
“A boy could be standing there — or a girl, or anybody with a rifle, an AR-15 or a handgun — and be standing there on the sidewalk looking at the school,” Goodin told WDRB. “The difference is this: We can’t even stop and ask them what they’re doing because of this law.”
Across the country, conservatives have once again called attention to laws that protect the right to bear arms. Some of the laws, such as the Louisiana and Ohio bills allowing teachers to carry guns, were proposed and passed after the shootings at Rob Elementary School and a TOPS grocery store in May.
Conversely, the shootings prompted lawmakers in Congress to pass more federal gun restrictions. The restrictions include an end to the boyfriend loophole, red flag laws that allow authorities to confiscate guns from individuals deemed a threat to society, and enhanced background checks for those under 21 who want to buy guns.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the U.S. Constitution protects the right to bear arms outside the home. The law repealed a New York state law that required people who registered to carry guns outside their homes to provide a good reason for doing so.
Indiana State Police did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
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