Concealed carry needed at schools

Gun-free School Zone Act is a federal U.S. law "that prohibits any unauthorized individual from knowingly possessing a firearm at a place that the individual knows or has reasonable cause to believe is a school zone."

This was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush in November 1990. In July, 2013, H.B. 2613 was introduced by congressman Ron Paul to repeal the law and amendments, it was defeated.

Mentally ill and armed criminals ignore "gun-free zone" signs and go there with a weapon and the intent to kill innocent citizens. Here we go again with a mass murder of students on a campus in Roseburg, Oregon, that bans guns on its "Gun-free School Zone."

We have to end this madness by repealing the Gun-free School Zone Act of 1990 and start over and rewrite the law to allow individuals to "conceal-carry" on school properties.

A "no guns allowed" sign will not stop a criminal person bent on shooting to kill at a school, church, post office, etc. but it does stop a law-abiding citizen.

In study after study, it shows that privately held firearms have been repeatedly shown to deter and prevent crimes with guns involved. Since our nation's inception we have known and embraced the freedom-giving truth that "guns protect the innocent."

The solution to these killing sprees is to end "gun-free zones," heavily prosecute gun crimes and get help for the mentally ill and have "conceal-carry" available to law-abiding citizens.

Judy Olsen

Elgin