Michigan Capitol security under review after Ted Nugent brings gun through detector
LANSING — Rock musician and outdoorsman Ted Nugent brought a prohibited gun through Capitol security when he testified before a committee June 25, officials said.
Some observers noticed Nugent appeared to be armed when he testified before the House Natural Resources and Tourism Committee in opposition to certain state hunting regulations.
State Rep. Laurie Pohutsky, D-Livonia, a member of a House Oversight subcommittee that was meeting jointly with the natural resources committee, said in a June 26 post on Instagram that "pretty early on" in Nugent's testimony "we recognized that he was carrying a gun."
Members flagged House sergeants, who took no immediate action, Pohutsky said. She said she decided to post on social media about the incident because she wants answers as to what happened and assurances the issue of Capitol security is being taken seriously.
"It's obviously not acceptable," she said.
Shanon Banner, a spokeswoman for the MSP, said June 27 that Nugent was screened at the north entrance of the Capitol June 25 by walking through weapons detection equipment that all visitors are required to pass through.
"The weapons detection system functioned correctly and alerted to a possible weapon; however, the trooper staffing the entry point did not see the alert until after Mr. Nugent left the screening area," Banner said.
"Upon completing his meeting, MSP personnel contacted Mr. Nugent and notified him of the weapons policy," Banner said. "We are still evaluating how the weapons detection alert was missed and will be following up to ensure this does not happen again."
The MSP security failure occurred as MSP Col. James Grady, who is facing criticism from troopers, command officers and Republican lawmakers over a number of issues, is expected to testify July 1 before the House Oversight Committee, in connection with the committee's investigation into MSP leadership, according to Rep. Jay DeBoyer, R-Clay Township, the committee chairman.
Under rules set by the Michigan Capitol Commission in 2021 and 2023, carrying firearms is mostly banned in the Capitol, with a few exceptions for law enforcement, security and sitting lawmakers with concealed carry permits.
A phone message and email left June 27 with Nugent's Michigan office seeking comment were not immediately returned.
Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Ted Nugent brings gun into Michigan Capitol
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