Mixed feelings arise in El Paso as Texas loosens firearm limits
EL PASO, Texas — Martin Portillo got a gun after the mass shooting at a Walmart in his hometown of El Paso two years ago, even though it went against his upbringing.
His wife, Daisy Arvizu, was working at the store when a man started firing — allegedly bent on killing as many Mexicans as he could in the predominantly Latino border city in the state’s western tip, according to authorities. And Portillo felt that getting the handgun and learning how to use it might give him peace of mind and help quiet his wife’s nightmares about the Aug. 3, 2019, attack that killed 23 people and wounded many others.
“I was the first one in my family to get a gun, we never resorted to anything like that,” the 26-year-old cable TV installer said.
On Wednesday, Texas became the 20th and largest state to allow some form of the unregulated carry of a firearm. Under the new law, most people age 21 or older who haven’t been convicted of a felony can carry a holstered handgun — concealed or otherwise — in public without undergoing any training or getting a permit.
Backers of the law, including Gov. Greg Abbott and his fellow Republicans in the Legislature, laud it as a necessary expansion of the “constitutional carry” movement that will allow people to more easily defend themselves without government interference. But critics, including some law enforcement groups and others, say this further loosening of firearms restrictions in a state that has had more than its share of mass shootings is reckless.
Until Wednesday, Texans needed a license to carry a handgun outside of their homes and vehicles. To get one, they had to submit fingerprints, go through several hours of training on gun laws and gun safety, and pass a shooting proficiency test. Now, they can still take an online training course that the law requires the state to provide, but it is not necessary.
The Walmart attack led New Mexico, which is only about 15 miles north of El Paso, to pass a “red flag” law that allows law enforcement to seize firearms from people who are deemed to pose a danger to themselves or others.