Congress is making good on the presidentās promise to strengthen gun rights for law abiding citizens. The House Judiciary Committee has voted to advance an important bill known as the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act. The committee voted to send the bill, offered by Republican Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, to the full House of Representatives on a vote of 18 to 9.
This legislation addresses a real problem for law abiding gun owners who often fall victim to conflicting state laws governing how firearms can be carried by citizens.
When I disarmed a man who was threatening people at a Baltimore, Maryland, pub, I never thought for a moment that I would be arrested for my effort to help contain the situation and prevent people from being harmed. But that isĀ exactly what happened to me.
It wasĀ at a July 4 gathering of family and friendsĀ whenĀ another man at the bar had become agitated over an issue involving his girlfriend. The boyfriend, angry that his date was dancing with another man, brandished his firearm and then used it to strike the other man in the head while shouting threats like, āIāll kill everyone.ā
As a firearms instructor and former member ofĀ the Marine Corps Security Force Regiment, I knocked the man down and disarmed him without causing harm to bystanders. I was also armed at the time, but I never drew my gun.But when Baltimore police officers arrivedĀ and learned that IĀ was armed,Ā I was arrested. The reason ā because my permit to carry a firearm was issued in Virginia and was not honored in Maryland. Despite my success in neutralizing an attacker with no incident, I was arrested and charged for having a firearm within 100 feet of a public building and for not having a Maryland-issued concealed carry permit. Ā
Baltimore policeĀ were gratefulĀ forĀ theĀ actions thatĀ neutralizedĀ the attacker who was charged with aggravated assault. Several officers saidĀ lives were saved,Ā but that didnāt stop higher ranking police officers and prosecutors from treating me like a criminal.
The charges included a year ofĀ prisonĀ time, heavy fines and forfeiture of a concealed carry permit.Ā I vehemently fought the charges ā paid my own legal bills ā and ultimately received a sentence of one year of unsupervised probation. Such punishment was not only unnecessary, it was insulting. My defense attorneyĀ told the court,Ā the āgood guy with the gunā was placed under arrest for simply āhaving a gun.ā
As a trained Marine and a member of a respected security force that has helped protect the president, Iāve responsibly carried my firearm in many different foreign countries. Yet lawful gun owners in America must still contend with restrictive and conflicting gun laws that differ between state lines and place law-abiding people at the risk of experiencing highly stressful, lengthy legal hassles.
All of this can changeĀ as the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act advances through Congress. The law will allow forĀ national conceal carry reciprocityĀ in all 50 states ensuringĀ that citizens who legally carry firearms for personal protection in their home state, can do so in all 50 states, without fear of punishment.If such legislation is passed, there will be no more reason for lawful citizens to face conflicting, confusing laws that often get them into trouble with police through no fault of their own.
Many states like Maryland, New York, New Jersey andĀ states on the West Coast have outdated, restrictive gun laws,Ā andĀ people continuously fall victim to unnecessary state or local restrictions. It isĀ estimatedĀ that there are more than 21 million concealed handgun permit holders in the United States today. That figure doesnāt include the people living in states where concealed carry permits are not required.Ā
Plenty of people in this country routinely travel great distances for work, to help family, etc. Women, truckers, seniors and other law-abiding folks haveĀ theĀ right to carry firearms ā state to state ā without fear of unnecessary punishment.CongressĀ can fix this national problem by passingĀ national concealed carry reciprocity.
Lloyd Muldrow is a recipient of the Carnegie Medal ā Americaās highest civilian honor for heroism, a Marine Corps veteran, and a combat and firearm instructor.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporterās byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contactĀ [email protected].