LANSING, Michigan (AP) – A state panel on Monday banned the public transportation of guns in the Capitol in Michigan, a week after an armed crowd in the U.S. Capitol rioted. and after a plot last year to storm the State House.
Movements to ban guns at the State House have been stalled since April, when protesters opposed COVID-19 of government Gretchen Whitmer. restrictions, some armed with long guns and other weapons, entered the Michigan Capitol and demanded to be allowed on the floor of a legislative chamber that was closed to the public.
The Michigan Capitol Commission, which is responsible for overseeing the Capitol, was reluctant to issue firearms rules, but changed Monday and issued the order banning public transportation of firearms.
Mike Shirkey, a spokesman for the Senate Majority Leader, who had earlier said the commission should not be held responsible for the creation of arms policy, said last week that he would support an open ban on violence after violence broke out in the US Capitol. by a crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump.
A spokesman for incoming speaker Jason Wentworth said he wanted everyone to abide by the rule, although he did not believe the commission had the right to issue it.
“The speaker is grateful for the work of the Capitol Commission, but he does not have the authority to determine policy in the Capitol,” Lynn Afendoulis said in a news release. ‘The speaker will look at options to deal with it going forward. Meanwhile, Michigan police will enforce the new ruling. ”
John Truscott, vice-chairman of the Commission, said the commission does not write policy but is ready to address general security issues. He said the state government would have to fund it.
“We do not have a budget for security measures, so in reality the governor and the legislature will have to deal with it,” Truscott said. “We have gone as far as possible with the budget constraints we have.”
Some anti-government extremists are accused of plotting to kidnap Whitmer carried guns during the protests at the Capitol last spring. Prosecutors say the accused chief initially spoke of recruiting 200 men to storm the building, take hostages and ‘execute tyrants’. According to court documents, a secondary plan was to close exits and set the State House on fire.
The FBI warned of plans for armed protests at all state capitals and in Washington, DC, in the days leading up to the election of Pres. Joe Biden. State spokesman Shanon Banner will increase his visible and invisible presence at the Capitol over the next few weeks, spokesman Shanon Banner said in an email on Monday.
The Democratic Party of Michigan has issued a statement saying that while it welcomes the fact that the commission ‘finally used their authority’, it is not enough and that all firearms within the Capitol should be banned.
Sen. Dayna Polehanki sought to ban all firearms from the Capitol by enacting legislation that killed those in the session last year. The Livonia Democrat said Monday before the panel vote that a public carrying ban does not go far enough and will lead to a false sense of security for those who work and visit the Capitol.
“Bullets are bullets,” she said, no matter what kind of gun someone brings.
“There’s no reason a gun belongs in the Capitol, it’s absurd, the world thinks it’s absurd,” Polehanki said. “It makes me sick that it’s even considered a viable action.”
___
Anna Liz Nichols is a corps member for the Associated Press / Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a non-profit national service program that puts journalists in local newsrooms to report on national issues.
___
Associated Press author David Eggert contributed to this report.