ShareNeb. measure aims to redefine gun owners' rights
Michael AvokGun owners who legally transport and store weapons in their vehicles would have better-defined property rights under a measure debated Wednesday in the Legislature's Judiciary Committee.
Legislative Bill 785 would provide clearer guidelines for the transportation and storage of firearms in vehicles in publicly accessible parking lots _ common lots provided for both employees and customers _ throughout the state.
Sen. Mark Christensen of Imperial said many gun owners face inconsistent rules and actions by their employers. He and other bill supporters said people should be allowed to have permitted handguns and hunting guns carefully locked and stored in their vehicles and not be subjected to employer weapons bans.
"I have had several Nebraskans contact me about trouble they had at work," Christensen told the Judiciary Committee.
Christensen also said his bill balances private property rights and the right to bear arms for law-abiding citizens.
Sen. Brenda Council of Omaha quizzed supporters Wednesday on the broad language of the bill and its potential impact of workplace violence.
"This is bill is not a balance," Council said. "It places the gun owner's rights above the property owner's."
Supporters said that if the bill passed, gun owner rights would indeed supersede the rights of an employer to ban weapons from a common parking lot.
Ron Jensen, lobbyist for the National Rifle Association, said most people who have weapons use them responsibly, and that most incidents of workplace violence do not involve someone retrieving a gun from his or her car.
"Those incidents get a lot of attention, but it's a small percentage of homicides," Jensen said. "If we prohibit having a gun in a vehicle, we detract from its usefulness in protection."
"I think what I have in my car is my business. It's my property," Jensen said.