City passes rule banning guns from some public buildings Travis M. Whitehead
The Monitor
MISSION The City Council passed an ordinance Monday declaring four areas off-limits to handguns.
The council voted 4-0 Councilmember Celestino Ramirez was not present to ban handguns from the Public Safety Building, City Hall, Speer Memorial Library and the Mission Parks and Recreation Department office.
The Public Safety Building houses both the police department and municipal court.
"I have to look after the welfare of our citizens," said City Manager Isauro Treviño. "I dont think having a handgun around any city building is safe for any person."
The council approved the measure in response to Senate Bill 501, which was passed by the 78th state Legislature in fall 2003, said Christopher Duque, executive assistant to the city manager. The new law, which took effect Sept. 1 of that year, says a person cannot be denied entry to government property just for carrying a legal concealed handgun. There are some exceptions to this rule, such as educational areas and facilities used by police and the court system, and city leaders have worked for more than a year to work out a city ordinance that complies with state law.
"We decided to look at the law and decide our options," Duque said. "It took a long time to figure out. We got together with the civil service attorney, Mark Sossi, whos helped us with a lot of civil service issues in the city. It took a long time to frame something that was workable."
Duque said handguns would not be allowed in City Hall because the police department and the municipal court sometimes have meetings there. The city has an agreement with agencies to provide GED courses at the Mission Parks and Recreation Department.
Duque criticized the state law passed two years ago.
"Basically what they did, they went in there and said the cities no longer will be able to select and decide what will be weapons-free zones," he said. "Heres a law thats going to address this instead of leaving it to local discretion. Its kind of like they are the ones and you dont get to decide how to make these changes."
Treviño said he was also concerned when the law passed.
"I was a little concerned about the safety of our citizens, having a concealed weapon where children are around, regardless of state statute," he said. "My goal is to try to ban guns from any city building. If thats not possible, I guess I will have to abide by state law.
"This is nothing personal against people who have handguns. This is safety for the people of Mission," Treviño said. "I would hate to see any liability in the city if one went off or if they are having a bad day."
Mayor Beto Salinas also applauded the new city ordinance, and he hoped it could be extended to more areas of the city.
"We are trying to keep weapons from public buildings," he said. "I just dont think, if somebody gets upset at the water department or somebody thinks we are charging them too much for water, I just think that situation is not good."
Treviño said he would continue researching the issue to determine if the city can declare more buildings off-limits for weapons.
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