Issue Position: Public Safety

Issue Position

Arkansas can institute smart gun safety measures.

I support bipartisan common sense gun safety measures. Like a lot of Arkansans, my husband and I are gun owners. As a responsible gun owner, I want to make sure that convicted felons, violent offenders, and domestic abusers do not have access to firearms, and most importantly I want our kids to be safe in their classrooms.

Universal background checks should be required for every new gun purchase. In addition, I don't think legislators have the right to tell any educator in this state -- whether at a public college or a local elementary school -- that they should be required to allow firearms in the classroom or to carry firearms as part of their job. Campus carry is a bad idea, and recent legislative proposals to arm schoolteachers or school resource officers without sufficient training -- or consent -- is dangerous.

I don't think the legislature should be able to tell any school that they must allow guns on their campus. I think we should take seriously the judgment of security offices, school administrators, and local law enforcement agencies when we make these serious and important decisions.

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