Gov. Parson: Do right by Missouri and sign Blair’s Law to punish celebratory gunfire | Opinion

In a few weeks, revelers across the Kansas City region will welcome a new year with all manner of celebrations — parties, bashes, fireworks and, if history is any guide, raucous gunfire.

That history also shows that so-called “celebratory gunfire” is dangerous and sometimes deadly.

In July, four Kansas Citians were injured by armed exuberance during the Independence Day holiday. One person was shot in the head, while another took a bullet to the chest. One particular incident continues to haunt the city: In 2011, 11-year-old Blair Shanahan Lane was killed by an errant bullet fired near the Truman Sports Complex on the Fourth of July.

Lane would be an adult today. She should still be alive.

“To be told she was hit by a bullet, I mean still till this day, it’s just incomprehensible,” her mother, Michele Shanahan DeMoss, told The Star in 2019.

The year after Lane’s death, Missouri lawmakers introduced a bill, “Blair’s Law,” that would toughen penalties for criminally negligent gunfire within city limits: Right now such violations are prosecuted under local ordinances, but the bill would make infractions a state offense.

The legislation didn’t pass that year, nor in many subsequent years. During its most recent session earlier this year, the Missouri General Assembly finally passed the bill as part of a larger crime bill that bundled in several other initiatives— only to see it vetoed in July by Gov. Mike Parson.

Good bill, bad bill

Parson later suggested that Blair’s Law was the unfortunate victim of being lumped in with too many other efforts he found objectionable. “It’s because it’s an omnibus bill, it’s not about Blair’s Law, I wish it was, if it was, it would have been an easy one to sign,” he said.

Which is why we fully expect that Blair’s Law will finally pass, with the governor’s approval, in 2024.

The work has already started. Reps. Mark Sharp (D-Kansas City) and Sherri Gallick (R-Belton) on Friday each pre-filed new bills that would revive Blair’s Law, ahead of the legislative session that starts next month.

Both versions would make it illegal to discharge a firearm in city limits — there are reasonable exceptions for firing ranges, self-defense and so forth — and both would include escalating penalties: A first offense would count as a misdemeanor. Every violation after that would be a felony, with eventual penalties of up to seven years in prison and a fine of $10,000 for repeated offenses.

What the Board said

The Kansas City Star Editorial Board has spent much of the last decade advocating for the passage of Blair’s Law.

In 2018, we agreed that the legislation was “a common-sense approach to responsible gun ownership.”

In 2022, we returned to the issue: “If people knew this thoughtless act could result in felony charges and prison, maybe they would think twice about doing such a foolish thing,” we said then.

And in July, we took Parson to task for vetoing the bill that had finally arrived on his desk. “What goes up must come down, Governor Parson,” we argued. “As a former lawman and supporter of the Second Amendment, Parson should know better than anyone the danger of indiscriminate gunfire.”

Blair Lane’s family has spent the last decade slogging through Jefferson City, showing a dogged commitment to ensuring the tragedy that altered their lives doesn’t happen to another Missouri family. They’ve come so close. 2024 must be when their efforts pay off.

So we take Gov. Parson at his word that he is willing to sign a standalone bill, unfettered by any other priorities. Blair’s Law has been delayed far too long. It’s up to the governor and Missouri legislators to finally turn the legislation into reality.

This story was originally published December 6, 2023 at 5:05 AM.