NRA among opponents of Alabama bill requiring people to tell police if they have concealed gun

By Mike Cason | mcason@al.com

Alabama repealed the requirement for a permit to carry a concealed handgun three years ago, a move supported by 2nd Amendment advocates and gun rights groups like the National Rifle Association.

The Alabama Sheriffs Association and many others in law enforcement opposed the bill, saying the permits were an important tool to fight gun violence.

To help overcome opposition to the bill, lawmakers added a clause that required people to disclose to police if they have a gun concealed under their clothes or in a vehicle, if police ask, such as during a traffic stop.

But that failure to inform clause carried no penalty. That means the clause about lying to police can’t be enforced, according to an opinion issued by the Alabama attorney general in 2023.

Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, has proposed a bill that would make it a Class A misdemeanor to lie to police about having a concealed gun. A Class A misdemeanor carries a jail sentence of up to a year and a fine of up to $6,000.

The Alabama House Judiciary Committee held a public hearing on England’s bill Wednesday. Two citizens and a lobbyist for the NRA spoke in opposition to it.

The committee did not vote on the bill but could reconsider it next week.

Alabama required a permit to carry a handgun concealed or in a vehicle until the Legislature repealed that law in 2022. The permitless carry law took effect in January 2023.

England, who opposed the repeal of the permit requirement, told committee members that the failure to inform clause was part of the negotiations and that the law should be fixed so it can be enforced.

Paul McKinney of Thorsby told the committee he believes the clause has constitutional problems.

He also said enforcement of the clause, requiring people to tell police if they have a gun, such as during a traffic stop, would increase stress levels and danger for police and citizens.

“All this is going to do is introduce another element of stress,” McKinney said.

“When you get stopped by a policeman, you get stressed. Sometimes you don’t know what you did, sometimes you do know what you did. But the thing about it is, it raises an anxiety level.”

McKinney said that anxiety level rises more if police ask a driver they stopped if they’re carrying a gun. It creates risk of a bad outcome if police seek to take possession of the gun.

“This is just not a good deal for anybody,” McKinney said.

Allen Williams of Verbena, a Chilton County commissioner, said he believes the failure to inform clause should not have been part of the permit-less carry bill. This was not the intent of the permit-less carry bill,” Williams said.

“It was intended to allow citizens their 2nd Amendment right. And I think the only fair thing to do with this amendment is not vote this amendment in and take that whole clause out. That eliminates the whole problem.”

Kelby Seanor, state director of the NRA, said making failure to disclose a crime would violate the 5th Amendment protection against self-incrimination.

“We believe an individual should not be compelled to provide potentially self-incriminating information to law enforcement,” Seanor said.

“And in situations where a person is carrying a concealed firearm, is pulled over, they’d be reluctant to share that information out of fear that it could lead to unnecessary scrutiny and lead to criminal charges, even if they are legally carrying a firearm. We believe that forcing people to disclose this information is an infringement of their rights.”

England said if a person is legally carrying a firearm, there is nothing incriminating about disclosing that to police. He said only felons who are prohibited by law from carrying guns would be incriminating themselves by disclosing that to police.

Rep. David Faulkner, R-Mountain Brook, also questioned how disclosure could be considered self-incrimination. This was not the intent of the permit-less carry bill,” Williams said.

“It was intended to allow citizens their 2nd Amendment right. And I think the only fair thing to do with this amendment is not vote this amendment in and take that whole clause out. That eliminates the whole problem.”

Kelby Seanor, state director of the NRA, said making failure to disclose a crime would violate the 5th Amendment protection against self-incrimination.

“We believe an individual should not be compelled to provide potentially self-incriminating information to law enforcement,” Seanor said.

“And in situations where a person is carrying a concealed firearm, is pulled over, they’d be reluctant to share that information out of fear that it could lead to unnecessary scrutiny and lead to criminal charges, even if they are legally carrying a firearm. We believe that forcing people to disclose this information is an infringement of their rights.”

England said if a person is legally carrying a firearm, there is nothing incriminating about disclosing that to police. He said only felons who are prohibited by law from carrying guns would be incriminating themselves by disclosing that to police.

Rep. David Faulkner, R-Mountain Brook, also questioned how disclosure could be considered self-incrimination.

Rep. Russell Bedsole, who is a major with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department, said he opposed the permit-less carry bill three years ago.

But Bedsole said law enforcement has adjusted to the change in the law. He said the lack of enforcement of the failure to inform clause is a “non-issue.”

The committee could take the bill up next week.