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By James CorbettPennsylvania’s law prohibiting guns in Pennsylvania schools is a “threat to public security” and a “war on the citizenry,” the governor said Thursday.
Pennsylvania lawmakers passed the law this month to combat a rise in gun violence, but lawmakers had warned it would have a chilling effect on the right to bear arms.
The Pennsylvania Senate passed a bill Thursday that makes it illegal to carry a firearm in a school zone, though the bill requires teachers to take steps to protect students.
The bill passed the state Assembly Wednesday, with the support of Gov.
Tom Wolf.
The governor has repeatedly expressed concern about the law, saying it “has the potential to be a war on the public” and an “assault on the rights of the people.”
Wolf said he was “very disappointed” by the legislation.
“It’s not good for public safety,” Wolf said in a radio interview on Thursday.
“It’s a threat to the public.”
The governor said the law “sends the wrong message” to the country about the dangers of guns in schools.
“The message is clear: If you don’t protect yourself, you can’t protect your children,” Wolf told WKMG.
The NRA’s Brady Campaign said the legislation is a violation of the Second Amendment, because it “will lead to the loss of Second Amendment rights for Pennsylvania’s children.”
The group called on Wolf to veto the legislation, which will go into effect next week.
The Republican governor also vetoed a bill last year that banned guns from schools in all other public settings, a move that Wolf said was necessary to protect the safety of children.
Wolf said that the bill was necessary because guns were not safe at school.
Pennsylvanians will have to obtain a permit to carry guns in the state, and some teachers are being told they can’t do so.
In Pennsylvania, gun owners who have a permit must register their weapons, get fingerprinted and have their weapons kept in locked containers at school buildings.
The state has the largest number of gun owners per capita in the country, with 2.2 million registered gun owners, according to data from the Brady Campaign.
