House backs armed judges

Bill would allow handguns in court

The state House on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted to give district and superior court judges the right to carry a concealed handgun into court for their protection.

Though the bill had been filed long before the mass killings at Virginia Tech this week, the slayings of 32 students and faculty and wounding of a dozen others by a lone gunman became fodder for strong debate by supporters and opponents of the legislation.

Some argued that fewer might have died on the campus if students and faculty had been allowed to carry firearms, while others contended that more deaths would have occurred.

"This is a bad week to do this [bill]," said Rep. Maggie Jeffus, a Greensboro Democrat.

The bill also brought the surprising claim from one lawmaker that judges are already bringing guns into state courtrooms for their protection.

"In my experience in the courtroom, there's a lot of judges who are already bringing a concealed weapon to court," said Rep. Tim Spear, a Washington County Democrat and retired state Superior Court clerk. "I fully support that."

One of the legislation's chief sponsors, Rep. Arthur Williams, a Washington Democrat, said a courthouse shooting in Atlanta that killed a judge and a courtroom employee two years ago helped prompt the legislation, along with requests from individual judges. He said that judges associations had not requested the legislation.

The debate quickly focused on whether the legislation would protect judges or put others in the courtroom at risk.

Some backers said the judges, particularly those in rural areas, are exposed to threats while entering and exiting courthouses. Others said the training the judges would be required to receive was not enough to ensure they would not make a hasty decision and shoot an innocent bystander.

The legislation requires judges to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon, which requires eight hours of firearms training.

House members tentatively passed the legislation 91-20. They must take another vote before the legislation can move to the state Senate for consideration.