Senate passes bill to allow guns in bars

The state Senate passed a bill today to allow gun carry permit holders to take their firearms into bars.

The bill passed 24-6. The permit holder carrying the gun into a place that serves alcohol is not allowed to consume alcohol under the legislation.

Sen. Doug Jackson (D-Dickson), who sponsored the legislation, said the current law forbidding permit holders from carrying their firearms into bars kept law-abiding citizens from protecting themselves against criminals, who wouldn’t care that there was a prohibition.

“Who are we protecting?” Jackson told fellow Senators.

Sen. Beverly Marrero (D-Memphis), who voted against the bill, raised questions about how the law would be enforced to make sure that gun carry permit holders in a bar did not consume alcohol.

“I have been in a bar before and I was always relatively happy that the people in that bar were not heavily armed,” Marrero said.

Local senators Thelma Harper (D-Nashville) and Joe Haynes (D-Goodlettsville) were two of the Senators voting against the legislation.

On the House side, the bill allowing guns to be taken into bars is still in subcommittee.

Thirty-four states, including five adjacent to Tennessee, allow handgun carry permit holders to take their guns inside a restaurant or bar serving alcohol.

About 185,000 Tennesseans have handgun carry permits.