State Rep. Shane Stringer (R-Citronelle), the sponsor of the 2022 legislation removing the state’s requirement for a concealed carry permit, recently slammed Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed’s continued blaming the bill for escalating crime in Alabama’s capital city.
With the recent increase in Montgomery crime, Reed, his chief of staff Chip Hill and other city officials have pointed the finger in multiple directions. Nearly all have criticized the legislature for passing constitutional carry in 2022 as a cause for the increased violence.
Permitless carry, also called constitutional carry, refers to the right of lawful citizens to carry a firearm on their person or vehicle without first purchasing a permit. The state passed a constitutional carry bill, sponsored by Stringer, in the 2022 legislative session.
SEE ALSO: Montgomery leaders play the blame game as community outrage over crime grows
The blame game from Reed has already received backlash from lawmakers who claim permitless carry is a scapegoat for a failing public safety policy.
On a Friday appearance on 93.1 "News and Views" with Joey Clark, Stringer rebutted the narrative that his bill is to blame for Montgomery's crime.
“Alabama has been an open state my whole life,” Stringer said. “And, you know, we’ve had the same problem over the years. Nothing has changed since we passed this bill. To think that the mayor of Montgomery believes that the law-abiding citizens of Montgomery has anything to do with these crimes is ridiculous.”
“When I decided to carry the bill, or actually before I even decided, I did a lot of homework, reaching out to sheriffs across the country that already had this legislation, and pretty much every single one said nothing changed," he added. "I had a couple that said that crime actually dropped in their areas, but the others said nothing changed. Crime didn’t go up. Nothing happened.”
According to Stringer, Reed’s critiques are identical to the same “misinformation” brought against the bill during the legislative process.
“It was a large misinformation that was put out during the legislation as we were trying to get it passed,” Stringer continued. “There was just a lot of misinformation being put out. The constitutional carry or the permit system never had anything to do with long guns and shotguns, rifles, that kind of stuff. The fact is, the people that are doing these crimes are prohibited from owning guns in the first place, you know? They’re criminals. They’re not the law-abiding gun owners of our community. These are bad guys that are breaking the law that we have in place for murder, robbery, assault, rape, everything else. So, to think that a $20 piece of plastic is going to prohibit that is ridiculous."
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
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