In a state that has suffered from several senseless acts of violence in the past year, the bill likely represented an emotional response to the tragedies. It has just been days since a gunman murdered eight and hurt several others at a Texas outdoor shopping mall.
The Community Safety Select Committee approved House Bill 2744 through an 8-5 vote that drew support from both political parties. Relatives of the Uvalde school shooting victims pushed for the bill as remembrance of the 19 children and two adults killed by an 18-year-old gunman last year.
The bill was passed just before a key deadline on Monday. The day is the last when House bills can be voted out of the lower chamber, though there are certain other avenues that may be used to revive legislation. The committee chair, Rep. Ryan Guillen (R), was urged by several relatives of Uvalde victims to give HB 2744 a vote.
One of those who gave an emotional statement was Javier Cazares, who lost his nine-year-old daughter Jacklyn in the massacre.
“One year ago today, my daughter had her communion. About a month later, she was buried in the same dress. Mr. Guillen, and anybody else who is stopping this bill from passing, sad to say but more blood will be on your hands.”
The bill was sponsored by Rep. Tracy King (D), who represents Uvalde.
The push for support for raising the minimum age for purchases won the day. There remains, however, a distinct uphill climb for the measure to become Texas law.
It is also unclear exactly how effective the proposal would be in stopping violent criminals from committing random acts of violence. For example, Monday’s legislative act followed the mass shooting in Allen by just two days.
It was in the Dallas suburb of about 100,000 people where a gunman used a semiautomatic rifle to kill eight shoppers at an outdoor mall.
The shooter, however, was 33.
Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott (R), a staunch Second Amendment supporter, has emphasized that any move to restrict law-abiding adults from purchasing certain firearms would be unconstitutional. He made this assertion at an earlier reelection event in Allen.
“It is clear that the gun control law that they are seeking in Uvalde — as much as they may want it — has already been ruled as unconstitutional.”
Shortly after the school massacre, Abbott observed that “for a century and a half, 18-year-olds could buy rifles and we didn’t have school shootings.” In fact, that has been Texas law ever since it has been a state. The governor added that “maybe we’re focusing our attention on the wrong thing.”
The Uvalde gunman purchased two semiautomatic rifles just after he turned 18. Gun rights opponents in Texas repeatedly called for a special legislative session after the Uvalde massacre to raise the minimum age.
It was just last year when a federal court in Fort Worth struck down a Texas law prohibiting adults under 21 from carrying pistols. U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman emphasized that the Second Amendment does not contain age restrictions on adults.
And it was last June when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a New York law that had been on the books for a century severely limiting the right to concealed carry. As Abbott noted, the landmark Bruen decision raised the bar very high for those who wish to restrict gun rights for adults.
History clearly shows that emotion, while completely understandable, makes a bad basis for law. There are many ways to protect innocent civilians and target violent criminals without trampling on Second Amendment rights, and lawmakers would be better served to look there.
