Last August, the St. Louis Board of Aldermen banned the open carry of firearms for anyone who isn’t also packing a concealed carry permit.
But even though police aren’t enforcing the law yet, they say they’re already seeing results.
"On the surface it does appear there is a decrease in the opening carrying of firearms," says St. Louis Metropolitan Police Sergeant Charles Wall, echoing comments that Police Commissioner Robert Tracy has recently made in public forums. "It’s possible with the amount of attention this legislation has gotten, there’s been a preemptive move, where you are seeing less open carrying."
The ordinance, which was the brainchild of Ward 8 Alderwoman Cara Spencer, was seen as one of the few ways in which St. Louis could tighten regulations on firearms in the city without running afoul of Missouri's very lax gun laws. In addition to making all gun owners apply for a permit before open carrying, it has the added effect of knocking teens out of the open carry category entirely, since the permits are limited to people 18 and older who’ve been honorably discharged from the military and, in the general population, those 19 and older.
Perhaps due to the fact that Spencer is likely to run against Mayor Tishaura Jones (and finished second to her last general election), many of Jones’ allies were initially skeptical of the bill — and Jones’ father, Virvus, was outspoken in his opposition.
But now, eight months later, Spencer says there is reason for cautious optimism that the ban may be having its intended effect.
"We've seen a dramatic drop in people open-carrying weapons, particularly kids," Spencer says. "It's increased the perception of safety."
She stresses that right now she can only speak anecdotally. But the ordinance took effect near the end of a summer when kids walking casually around downtown with alarmingly large guns was a sight too common for comfort — both in terms of resident safety and the general optics for the city — and those sorts pictures just haven’t been showing up online as of late, even amid the unusually warm weather.
The impact could increase as police begin enforcing it. Wall says they plan to do that soon.
The delay in enforcement, he says, stems from a provision in the ordinance that requires the department to keep records of any contact officers have with individuals under the auspices of enforcing it and to submit data about those interactions on an annual basis. This required the department to alter some policies and procedures, including generating a new form for officers to fill out when they stop someone under the ordinance.
As for when actual enforcement will take effect, Wall says that will be in "short order."
"It's a priority here, absolutely," he says.
Subscribe to Riverfront Times newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
