Gun advocate asks Bardstown City Council to address issues with ordinances

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette

Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011, 1:30 a.m. – Having declared recent questions about several of the city’s firearms-related ordinances “a dead issue,” Bardstown Mayor Bill Sheckles was faced with someone who believed the topic needed more discussion: Shelby County resident Stephen McBride.

McBride has been a frequent guest at Bardstown City Council meetings since October. For 18 months prior to that, he said he has been in contact with city officials by e-mail and telephone to alert them to problems with city ordinances dealing with firearms and concealed weapons.

At last week’s council working session, Sheckles said unless McBride had something new to say at future council meetings he might not give McBride time to speak. Tuesday night Sheckles appeared ready to make good on that statement by skipping over the public comment portion at the beginning of the meeting.

When McBride questioned Sheckles about the comment period, Sheckles said the comment period applied “if I choose to recognize somebody who has something important to say.”

After McBride told him he had something important to say, Sheckles told him “You’re not on the agenda.”

“So you’re going to limit my ability to speak to you?” McBride asked.

STEPHEN MCBRIDE

“You’re not on the agenda,” Sheckles repeated.

McBride protested, prompting Sheckles to respond, “If you don’t have anything different than what you’ve been speaking about, you’re not going to be on this agenda.”

McBride said he would speak on a different topic; when Sheckles didn’t respond and went on with the meeting, McBride protested: “I said I’ll speak on something else, are you going to prohibit me from speaking entirely?”

Sheckles gave McBride an opportunity to speak at the end of the council meeting.

Taking the floor, McBride praised the city for correcting the signs regarding concealed weapons. He read excerpts from the Kentucky constitution’s bill of rights, and noted the constitution limits the state legislature’s power to regulate firearms.

“The General Assembly itself has no power to prevent citizens from carrying weapons in the open,” he said. “They can only deal with concealed weapons.”

McBride said the wording in the city’s concealed weapons law concerned him because the wording appears to include outside areas, an area where the city cannot regulate concealed weapons. If parks are posted with the signs, McBride promised he will visit them carrying two deadly weapons — one concealed, one openly carried. “If anyone cares to enforce that prohibition I’ll be glad to accommodate them.”

“You don’t plan on shooting anyone, do you?” Sheckles asked.

McBride said he had no intention of shooting anyone, adding “I would like to be able to defend myself is someone decided to shoot me.”

McBride told the council details about his meeting with his state legislator, Rep. Brad Montell of Shelbyville, and J.D. Chaney, an attorney who is chief governmental affairs officer with the Kentucky League of Cities, to discuss Bardstown’s ordinances that McBride has questioned. That meeting prompted the KLC to send out guidelines regarding cities’ ability to regulate firearms.

“I originally told you the statues were very plain,” McBride said.  “The Attorney General has issued three opinions on this subject. You’ve ignored that, you’ve ignored me, and now you’re ignoring the Kentucky League of Cities,” he said. “How many times do you have to be told about this, and by whom?”

McBride chided city attorney Tom Donan who told the Gazette last week he hadn’t reviewed material supplied by McBride because there was more important city business to work on .

“I can’t think of any city business that would be more important than the violation of a person’s Constitutional rights,” McBride said, adding that if this was an issue dealing with religion, race or free speech, there would be no delay in addressing it.

“Duly noted,” Sheckles said after McBride finished his comments.

“Mr. McBride, if you chose to come to another meeting with the same language, make sure you request to be on the agenda in writing,” Sheckles said. “You send in your request and I’ll decide if you’ll be on the agenda.”

McBride pointed out the meeting was a public one. “I don’t think it is appropriate to pick out to only hear what you want to hear,” he said.

Sheckles said as mayor, he controls the agenda. “You send in your request and I’ll decide if its appropriate or not.”

In the hallway after the meeting, McBride said he plans to attend functions in Bardstown as often as possible. “Maybe in the meantime the city attorney will find time to look into this,” he said.

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