Latest news with #NorthCarolinaSenateJudiciaryCommittee
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill allowing private school employees to carry concealed firearms passes NC Senate panel
Students line up as they return to school in Durham County. (File photo) The North Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill that would allow employees and volunteers of K-12 private schools to carry concealed firearms on school property Tuesday afternoon. Senate Bill 280 would allow employees and volunteers at these schools to possess handguns and stun guns with the consent of school administrators and written notice to parents. They must hold a concealed carry permit and complete additional training before becoming eligible to possess firearms on school property. The proposal is part of a larger trend in the North Carolina legislature in which Republican lawmakers have sought to respond to the rise in school shootings by equipping adults with firearms and defensive implements. A bill with a similar approach passed the House Judiciary 2 Committee a day prior allowing schools to store tasers, pepper spray, and other 'less-than-lethal' weapons in biometric safes. A separate provision in SB 280 allows for firearms to be carried by attendees of worship services, funerals, weddings, and other religious events held at places of worship located on the grounds of private schools at the discretion of school administrators. Sen. Steve Jarvis (R-Davidson) said the bill 'balances safety with individual rights' through stringent criteria for training, permitting, and school oversight. 'This bill simply strengthens the safety in North Carolina's private schools while respecting the unique needs of our communities,' Jarvis said. 'It allows private school employees or volunteers with concealed carry permits to carry firearms on school grounds, but only with the explicit authorization of the school board and/or the administration director.' Sen. Sydney Batch (D-Wake) proposed adding a requirement that private school employees and volunteers affected by the bill be vetted against the state's Responsible Individuals List, which tracks adults implicated in the abuse and serious neglect of children. Jarvis said he would follow up with her suggestion at some point in the future. Democratic lawmakers raised concerns about the implications that other bills around concealed carry would have on these new exceptions. Sen. Terence Everitt (D-Wake) noted that the Senate passed a bill allowing permitless concealed carry in March, warning that this would undermine SB 280's reliance on permit training and safety requirements. Sen. Lisa Grafstein (D-Wake) expressed concerns about the lack of an age requirement, noting that the permitless carry bill would allow 18-year-olds to carry concealed firearms — and by extension, SB 280 could allow them to bring them into schools. Robert Ryan, an attorney with the General Assembly's Legislative Affairs Division, said that even with the existence of permitless concealed carry, this bill would still require a permit for individuals to carry weapons onto school grounds — leaving intact the training and age requirements. North Carolina would continue issuing concealed carry permits even under the March bill to maintain reciprocity with states that do not have permitless carry. Among the speakers during the public comment part of the meeting were leaders at religious private schools who urged lawmakers to pass the bill so they and their students could feel safe. 'We do everything that we can within the law to protect these precious children from danger,' said Matthew Floyd, a faculty member at Greenville Christian Academy. 'We love these children as our own and many are willing and able to be trained, you know, with rigorous training to be able to be an immediate line of defense against the horrible thought of a gunman entering the property.' Ron Baity, a pastor who founded a Wilkes County Christian private school in the 1970s, said 'every day we are horrified' at the prospect that a shooter could attack their school. 'I hear it said that innocent people could be killed if a shooter comes on the property and our staff is armed,' Baity said. 'The truth of the matter is, if we have no resistance against the individual who's armed, he can kill all of our staff, he can kill all of our students, and we have no way to protect anyone.' Amanda Lierman, a substitute teacher in Wake County with Moms Demand Action, said bringing guns into schools would only place an 'undue burden' on school staff. She was the only member of the public to speak against the bill. 'My friend and her sons experienced a shooting at their elementary school last year, when a staff administrator was shot and killed by their ex-husband,' Lierman said. 'My friend described the running students and the chaos that ensued — having more guns among that chaos would have increased the risk of more casualties.' After passing the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday, SB 280 will next be heard by the Senate Rules Committee, where it can then be scheduled for a vote by the full Senate.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NC Senate Judiciary panel passes bill restricting mass picketing at workplaces
North Carolina General Assembly (File Photo) The North Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee advanced a bill Tuesday morning imposing civil penalties on workers and protesters who conduct 'mass pickets' that are deemed obstructive or violent by a court of law. The proposal, Senate Bill 484, would allow employers to obtain an injunction and temporary restraining order against anyone who protests at their place of business to the extent of 'hindering or preventing' work, using threats or force, or blocking workplace entrances, exits, or public roads and streets. It amends an existing law that centers on protecting employees from harassment, stalking, and violence. Among the forms of relief available to judges in the bill are no-contact orders and prohibitions on visiting the workplace, punishable as contempt of court, which would open violators to fines and jail time. 'What Senate Bill 484 strives to achieve is a balance between those who want to peacefully protest and those who actually want to go to work and earn a living uninhibited by those that are protesting,' said Sen. Tim Moffitt (R-Henderson), a primary sponsor of the bill. The bill comes amid a flurry of labor activity around the state as union efforts has risen in recent years, with the number of union election petitions nationally doubling from 2021 in the most recent fiscal year. In February, North Carolina saw a high-profile union election at Garner's Amazon warehouse that spurred protest events from labor activists, though demonstrators gathered across the street from the warehouse rather than near any entrances or exits. In an interview after the committee vote, Duke professor and labor organizer Orin Starn said he feels the bill aims to 'discourage workplace demonstrations and picketing' regardless of the conduct of protesters. A participant in the efforts to unionize the Amazon warehouse, Starn said employers already have 'plenty of protections' when it comes to protests on their property. He noted that some members of the Amazon union campaign were arrested for trespassing by Garner police when they tried to collect union cards and give out food on the premises. 'This bill seems very much about weaponizing the law to keep workers from organizing,' Starn said. 'Workers are already afraid of retaliation because there are minimal protections right now for workers who are trying to organize.' Sen. Terence Everitt (D-Wake) asked whether protests at Tesla dealerships — which have drawn large crowds around the country as demonstrators have denounced CEO Elon Musk's actions in the Trump administration — would be permitted by the bill so long as they remain peaceful and do not include threats or obstruction. Moffitt confirmed they would be. Sen. Mujtaba Mohammed (D-Mecklenburg) proposed two amendments seeking to clarify the scope of the bill, aiming to avoid any prohibitions on federally protected labor activity. The first defines obstruction as a 'sustained or deliberate physical blockage' that disrupts operations or public safety, and the second excludes from the bill any peaceful demonstrations, informational pickets, or protected labor activity — provided they do not rise to the level of violence, threats, or obstruction. Both amendments passed, though Sen. Lisa Grafstein (D-Wake) said she still held concerns that workers may be intimidated from participating in labor protests by the messaging around the bill. 'We have a lot of efforts underway to protect employee rights, and I think it's important that they not be limited or people be intimidated from participating in those,' Grafstein said. 'I believe there are some aspects of this bill that could continue to intimidate people from engaging in peaceful protests.' The bill is will proceed to a vote before the Senate Rules Committee, where it could then be scheduled for a hearing on the Senate floor.
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NC Senate committee approves permitless carry of concealed firearms for residents 18 and older
(Photo by Aristide Economopoulos/NJ Monitor) The North Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee voted Tuesday to approve a bill allowing gun owners to carry concealed handguns without obtaining a permit, sending it to another panel. Senate Bill 50, which bears the title 'Freedom to Carry NC,' would authorize permitless concealed carry for individuals who are U.S. citizens, at least 18 years of age, and not otherwise prohibited by law, according to the bill's text. Its primary sponsors are Sens. Danny Britt (R-Hoke, Robeson, Scotland), Warren Daniel (R-Buncombe, Burke, McDowell), and Eddie Settle (R-Alexander, Surry, Wilkes, Yadkin). Britt and Daniel are two of the Judiciary Committee's co-chairs. Senate leader Phil Berger is backing the measure, he shared when sponsors filed it in February. North Carolina law currently requires gun owners to obtain permits from their local sheriff's office in order to carry a concealed handgun. Concealed carry also requires a minimum of eight hours of training. 'We believe that our constitution is clear that law abiding citizens should be allowed to constitutionally carry,' Britt said. 'We believe they should be able to constitutionally carry without having to jump through the hoops that you do for a concealed carry permit.' If passed into law, North Carolina would become the 30th state to allow what proponents call 'constitutional carry' — meaning concealed carry without a permit. The legislation would still allow concealed carry permits to be issued 'for the purpose of reciprocity when traveling in another state.' States allowing permitless concealed carry are not limited to red states, the sponsors pointed out. While neighbors like South Carolina and Tennessee grant it, so do others like Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The panel adopted an amendment clarifying that gun owners would be able to carry concealed handguns but not other types of firearms. Senators chose not to discuss this amendment. Several witnesses gave brief testimony during the public comment portion of the meeting, providing perspectives from law enforcement, military veterans, and healthcare providers. Beverly Falls, a retired physician and surgeon, said hospitals regularly practice crisis events. She described the situation as a 'public health epidemic in this country' due to the vast number of guns. Falls said lax gun laws endanger the public as well as law enforcement. 'It's a tragedy when we have actual events such as mass shootings, where there are no survivors to even arrive at our emergency rooms,' Falls said. 'We need safety measures, not guns.' Raleigh police officer Hattie Gandhi also spoke against the bill. She shared a story from her time in law enforcement about how current law prevents violent crime by allowing officers to pursue and detain people who are suspected of carrying concealed weapons. 'Concealed carry permits protect police officers and the public,' she said. Becky Ceartas, executive director of North Carolinians Against Gun Violence (NCGV), suggested adding background checks to the legislation. In 2023, the General Assembly removed the pistol purchase permitting system, allowing residents to purchase a handgun without getting a permit from a local sheriff. 'If Senate Bill 50 becomes law, it would mean that people as young as 18 years old, with no training and no background check, could carry a hidden loaded weapon in public,' Ceartas said. 'Make no mistake, if Senate Bill 50 passes, the research is clear: it will be paid for in North Carolinian lives.' NCGV has noted that weakening or removing the concealed carry permitting requirements is associated with a 29% increase in firearm violent crime rates. The legislation now heads to the Senate Rules Committee.
