This article of about four column-inches appears on the front page of today's (31 Jan 2018) edition of the Idaho State Journal: LINK

quote:

Bill urges gun safety courses in public schools

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — An Idaho House panel has introduced legislation encouraging public schools to offer gun safety courses as electives.

Rep. Ron Nate, a Republican from Rexburg, reintroduced the proposal Monday after having a similar bill spiked last year.

According to the legislation, firearms would be permitted to be used in primary and secondary schools during the course, but live ammunition would be banned. Instructors have to be from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, a law enforcement agency or a firearms organization.

Last year, opponents said they couldn’t vote for the bill because it raised too many logistical and financial concerns.

The House Education Committee agreed to introduce the measure, clearing it for a full hearing.

Don't they realize that that will only encourage kids to shoot their classmates?

Wow, there's something you don't see everyday.

Love it though and wish them success!

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
Don't they realize that that will only encourage kids to shoot their classmates?

No, just as with Sex Education, they already wanted to pull the trigger.

When I was 11 yrs old, I guess 6th grade, in transition between Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, we went one eve per month to the Nat'l Guard Armory range and shot .22's for the evening. In high school it was not uncommon to see rifles in a rear window rack of pickup trucks in the student parking lot. My world geography teacher would bring his deer rifle to class, from woodshop, where he was doing some custom work on the stock. No one gave any of this a second thought.

quote:

In high school it was not uncommon to see rifles in a rear window rack of pickup trucks in the student parking lot.

Many times my 20 gauge shotgun was in my pickup rear window in the parking lot of our high school. We would go bird hunting right after school got out.

It's a step. I'd like to see shooting instruction and competition...

My high school in Detroit, Michigan had its own underground indoor .22 rifle range--it was principally used by the Army Junior ROTC cadets. I graduated in 1955.

flashguy

Good. I hope the states lefties are getting all foamy about the mouth as we speak.

Good for them,I hope it catches on every where.
Making good citizens starts early in schools.
most of the country has taught some bad things for decades by teachers and professors that go against our true American principles

it'll die because someone will say it triggered them. The idea is nice, and would probably cut down on accidentally shootings, but the left will cry to much for it

When I was in high school there wasn't a single day I didn't have a .22 rifle in my car. From 7th grade on I had a knife in my pocket every day.

A magazine ranked US states’ gun laws — and that led to legislation in Idaho today

BY WILLIAM L. SPENCE
Lewiston Tribune

Legislation prompted by Idaho’s low ranking on a 2013 gun rights survey was introduced in the House State Affairs Committee on Monday.
The “castle doctrine” or Stand Your Ground bill expands legal protections for property owners who shoot someone who breaks into their home, car or business.

Alexandria Kincaid, an attorney representing the Idaho Second Amendment Alliance, told the committee that interest in this legislation began in 2013.

“The whole issue arose when a national magazine, ‘Guns and Ammo,’ did a survey,” she said. “Idaho was ranked 32nd in the country for gun rights. This was a shock and surprise for many citizens. They called on the Second Amendment Alliance to explain why.”

Upon investigation, Kincaid said, Idaho’s low score stemmed primarily from its “outdated” justifiable homicide statute and the absence of “stand your ground” language that prohibits prosecutors from presenting evidence that the shooter could have run away.

After reviewing what other states have done, she said, the alliance helped craft a bill to address several key gaps in Idaho law.

First, the measure clarifies that any homeowner who shoots an intruder is presumed to be justified in their use of force, as long as the “intruder” isn’t a law enforcement officer or someone who has a legal right to enter the home or business.

“We want the starting point in any criminal investigation (into the use of deadly force) to be that the person who wasn’t breaking the law ... was in fact justified,” Kincaid said. “If someone’s in your home and you haven’t invited them there, you can make a quick decision. You don’t need to announce yourself, you don’t need to figure if they intend to cause you harm. You can use defensive force - and if you do, the laws of Idaho will be on your side, not the side of the person who may have been injured.”

If charges do get brought against the homeowner, she said, this bill would prohibit the prosecutor from presenting evidence showing that they could have turned and run away.

“While Idaho says you don’t have a duty to retreat, the evidence that you could have still gets put before juries, to say that what you did wasn’t reasonable,” Kincaid said. “So now we’re second-guessing your split-second decision-making. So we incorporated stand-your-ground provisions and a provision to say that the jury or judge doesn’t get to consider whether you could have turned and run. That’s not admissible evidence in a trial.”

During her testimony, Kincaid only cited once case dealing with stand-your-ground laws. That was in Florida, where George Zimmerman was charged and subsequently acquitted for the 2012 shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin.

Rep. Jason Monks, R-Nampa, said he’d rather hear more about why this legislation is needed in Idaho.

“I’d like to see examples where we had problems with the existing statutes in Idaho, where it affected Idaho citizens,” he said. “That’s a good reason to change laws — as opposed to there being a ranking in a magazine where we didn’t do too well. That doesn’t seem to me like a really good reason why we should do this.”

Although other committee members had several technical questions about the bill, Rep. Elaine Smith, D-Pocatello, was the only one to vote against introducing it.

Reps. Paulette Jordan, D-Plummer and a candidate for governor, and Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird, both sided with the majority in voting to introduce the bill. A hearing will now be scheduled to take public comment.

quote:

Originally posted by Sigmanic:
Wow, there's something you don't see everyday.

Love it though and wish them success!

Agree 100%. More states should do this.

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:
It's a step. I'd like to see shooting instruction and competition...

Another good point.

I got to shoot every summer at Scout camp, and was on my high school's rifle team in Tennessee. Local teams around here in SC only shoot pellet guns. We shot at Vanderbilt's range.

I think every child should be taught the basic firearms safety rules. When I was young, this was generally done by one's parents (usually the father) but these days there don't seem to be many parents who know them, either. I don't care if someone ever owns or even handles a gun, but I think they should have been taught how to do it safely.

flashguy