Gun rights bills head to La. House floor

I agree that we need to preserve the First Amendment. The penalties for releasing the information should be sufficient.

BATON ROUGE — A House committee has ruled that gun owners’ rights top First Amendment rights.

The House Committee of the Administration of Criminal Justice Wednesday approved two bills by Rep. Steve Thompson, R-Bossier City, which would make it a felony for anyone to publish names and addresses of people who hold permits to carry concealed weapons. The bills, HB8 and HB98, apply to statewide permits and those issued by sheriffs that are valid in parishes where they are issued.

“There’s a danger of making people subject to robbery,” Thompson told the committee.

HB8 expands prior legislation that removed lists of handgun permit holders from the public records law to include a misdemeanor penalty — up to $500 fine and up to six months in jail — for releasing that information to anyone. It also adds a felony penalty — up to $5,000 fine and up to two years in prison — for publicizing that information in any manner.

more here