NASHVILLE, May 9 (UPI) -- A bill before the Tennessee Legislature would allow licensed gun owners to bring their weapons into public parks.
One of the measure's sponsors told The Nashville Tennessean he believes the April massacre at Virginia Tech has made passage more likely. Sen. Tim Burchett said the shootings "created a more positive atmosphere" for laws on carrying firearms.
State Rep. Frank Nicely, who introduced the bill in the House, is considering another law that would allow college teachers and students to carry handguns.
The killing of 32 professors and teachers has been used by advocates on both sides of the gun-control debate. Advocates of stricter laws point out that a student with a history of disturbing behavior was able to buy guns and ammunition easily and legally in Virginia, while critics say he could have been stopped if one of the people he encountered in a classroom building had been armed.
The head of the agency that runs the state parks and the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police oppose the bill. A lobbyist for the Fraternal Order of Police appears to support it, the newspaper said.
