Our Research on Guns allowed in State Capitols Mentioned In The Wall Street Journal

Here is the mention that the Wall Street Journal recently made of our work on which Capitols allow people to carry guns.

. . . At least 21 states allow Capitol visitors, legislators or employees to carry guns under some circumstances, says the Crime Prevention Research Center, a nonprofit group that often issues reports supportive of gun rights. The nonpartisan National Conference of State Legislatures said it doesn’t track the issue.

Over the past decade, the number of states that allow people to be armed at the statehouse has edged slightly higher, said John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center. A 2017 Iowa law allows pistols and revolvers in the Capitol building in Des Moines and surrounding grounds and parking. Guns must be concealed and the person carrying one must comply with all other state laws, like holding a permit. . . .

Across the country, there have been no reported incidents of anyone being hurt at state capitols that allow firearms, Mr. Lott said, though some lawmakers have left loaded guns unattended. A New Hampshire state representative in 2017 dropped a loaded gun on the floor during a committee hearing, and in 2006, a Virginia lawmaker accidentally fired his gun inside his office, according to the center. . . .

Gun control groups argue that something might go wrong, but despite decades of experience with these laws, they are not forced to provide a single example where their feared claims have occurred.

The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, a gun-control group, opposes letting people carry guns in state capitols. “It increases the chance of a disagreement turning into some type of deadly shootout,” said Laura Cutilletta, the center’s managing director. . . .