INDIANAPOLIS — Beginning July 1, Hoosiers will be able to carry a handgun in public without a permit.
Some say the permit-less carry bill is needed.
"It's just removing those obstacles for the law-abiding. I don't see a problem with it," the retail manager at Indy Arms Company, Mark Welter, said. "We shouldn't have to pay fees to the government to exercise a constitutional right."
Others who struggle with gun violence are worried.
"I'm terrified," Alexandra Rollo, with the organization Moms Demand Action said. "This makes everyone's life riskier, and it puts our cops in a position where they don't have any leg to stand on. They see somebody with a gun, no longer will the law allow them to question a person. That's crazy."
Those in support of the law say it clears the red tape for legal gun owners.
"We don't put a tax on speech, we don't put a tax on worship, all of those things are enshrined into the constitution. Self-defense is the same thing," Welter said.
Welter said there is a constitutional right when it comes to carrying a gun and that right shouldn't be taxed.
"I've never heard any bad guys pass on doing any criminal activity because my gun permit hasn't arrived yet," Welter said.
Those opposed fear it will create more gun violence and make it tough on police.
"It's going to be a war zone," Donita Royal who lost her son to gun violence said. "The violence is going to skyrocket even higher than what it is now. We have to have order. Some laws do need to be put in place."
A similar measure that created permitless carry went into effect Monday in Ohio.
-
Man dies after crashing into semi on Indy's northwest side
A man died in a crash on Indianapolis’ northwest side Tuesday afternoon, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.Governor says ex-DCS director's special advisor position is a "second chance"
Governor Mike Braun says the former director at the Indiana Department of Child Services left “because he had a personal issue” and that he deserves a second chance.
Richard Allen defense files new appeal response, seeks oral arguments
Richard Allen's attorneys submitted a new filing in the Court of Appeals on Tuesday and requested an oral argument as they continue their effort to overturn his conviction in the Delphi murders case.
Fishers Senate candidate charged with cocaine possession
A Democratic candidate for Indiana State Senate faces drug charges after police say he was canvassing a neighborhood while high on cocaine.