JEFFERSON CITY — The mother of a Kansas City girl who died from a stray bullet more than a decade ago urged members of the Missouri Senate to rewrite legislation that would further loosen state gun laws.
Michele Shanahan-DeMoss, the mother of an 11-year-old who was killed on July 4, 2011, said a bill that allows guns on buses and churches should not include a provision imposing tougher penalties for people firing celebratory gunshots.
“We just need to somehow separate it,” Shanahan-DeMoss told members of the Senate General Laws Committee.
Shanahan-DeMoss said the Legislature needs to address celebratory gunfire without bogging it down with other provisions of state gun laws. In tearful testimony, she described the incident that killed her daughter, Blair.
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“As we were loading Blair in the ambulance, there was gunfire still happening,” Shanahan-DeMoss said.
Her call for separating the provision found bipartisan support.
“It gets stalled every year. I apologize to you that it keeps happening,” said Sen. , D-Kansas City.
Sen. , R-Sikeston, said she is helping to get a stand-alone version through the House and into the Senate for further debate.
This year, St. Louis police received 736 reports of gunshots across the city as people celebrated the New Year. At least four people were wounded by stray bullets.
The proposal is one piece of a bill that is part of an ongoing push by Republicans to ease gun laws in a state where gun violence has become a significant concern.
State law allows people to carry concealed weapons without a permit. There is no requirement for background checks on the sale of certain weapons.
The legislation containing Blair’s Law and the public transit and church provisions earlier moved out of the House on a 101-40 vote.
Supporters say transit riders will feel safer if they are packing a gun while riding to their destination. Under current law, it is a crime to board a bus with a dangerous or deadly weapon. The measure wouldn’t apply to Amtrak.
“The prohibition stifles their ability to protect themselves,” said Sen. , R-Harrisonville. “To me, this is protecting that little grandma who has to use public transportation to go to the grocery store.”
Rep. , R-St. Charles, is sponsoring the package. As a former pastor, he said he carried a concealed weapon in his parish and encouraged others to if they desired. But he said leaders of places of worship could put up signs asking people not to bring weapons in.
“I do know there is an underlying level of support for that,” Schnelting said.
Under current law, people with concealed carry licenses must get the explicit permission from the place of worship’s leaders to bring their weapon inside.
Opponents said Missouri doesn’t need looser gun laws.
“I know my city doesn’t want this,” Razer said. “This is not an issue in Kansas City. I’m not afraid to go to the grocery store. What’s wrong with society that we’ve gotten to this point?”
Mike Winter, representing the Missouri Public Transit Association, said the group continues to oppose the proposal.
“Our position has not changed. We are obviously very concerned about the safety of our riders,” Winter said.
Bi-State Development, which operates transit in the St. Louis region, has previously said concealed weapons could only be allowed if Illinois approves the same law, which is unlikely to happen.
The legislation is .
Originally posted at 12:50 p.m. Tuesday, March 29.
Michele Shanahan-DeMoss, the mother of an 11-year-old Kansas City girl who died from a stray bullet, called for a change in state law that would address so-called “celebratory gunfire.”
