JEFFERSON CITY 鈥 The mass shooting Wednesday at Kansas City鈥檚 celebration of the Chiefs鈥 Super Bowl victory spurred new calls for stricter gun laws in Missouri.
But old arguments for and against such measures also resurfaced, with Republican leaders 鈥 who control the Legislature and all statewide offices 鈥 signaling new laws are not needed.
House Speaker Dean Plocher, R-Des Peres, said in a news conference Thursday 鈥渓aws alone鈥 don鈥檛 solve the problem of gun violence.
鈥淲e will work on the unfolding events in Kansas City, but I believe Kansas City already has an ordinance ... in the books that should鈥檝e prevented what happened. Laws alone don鈥檛 solve the problem,鈥 Plocher, a Republican running for lieutenant governor, told reporters Thursday.
Kansas City of firearms and ammunition to minors without permission from the minor鈥檚 parent or guardian, as well as discharging firearms in the city.
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Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said Thursday after Plocher鈥檚 press conference that two juveniles were among those detained after the shooting, and that officials had recovered several firearms.
Plocher was pressed on a measure House Republicans voted down last year that would鈥檝e made it illegal for minors to possess firearms in public.
Amid continued questioning on guns, Plocher abruptly ended the press conference without committing to additional firearm restrictions.
鈥淲e are looking at that investigation as it is unfolding. Obviously we鈥檙e rather sorry for those who have lost their lives,鈥 Plocher said. 鈥淎s that unfolds, we鈥檒l have greater comment.鈥
The speaker also touted a crime bill the House gave first-round approval to this week, which includes a long-debated prohibition on celebratory gunfire and increased penalties for unlawful firearm possession.
鈥淲hat we鈥檝e tackled in the House is crime,鈥 Plocher said.
Numerous elected officials, including Gov. Mike Parson, Senate Majority Leader Cindy O鈥橪aughlin, R-Shelbina, and Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, were on hand in Kansas City to celebrate the Chiefs鈥 victory.
鈥淚 did see people running but couldn鈥檛 understand why. When I saw the police and others in tactical outfits with weapons drawn then I knew somewhere nearby there was a problem,鈥 O鈥橪aughlin said on Facebook.
Rizzo called for tighter gun laws action after expressing gratitude to first responders in a social media post. He said first responders helped get him and countless others to safety.
鈥淲e shouldn鈥檛 have to live like this,鈥 Rizzo said on social media. 鈥淲e need common sense gun safety laws & we need them now. It鈥檚 not about politics, it鈥檚 about the kind of world we want for our kids.鈥
The Republican majority during last year鈥檚 legislative session rejected virtually all gun limits supported by Democrats, including risk protection orders to confiscate guns from dangerous individuals and efforts to bar the purchase of semi-automatic firearms for teenagers.
Last summer after one teenager died and 10 were injured in a shooting at a downtown 狐狸视频 office building, three of 狐狸视频鈥 top elected officials, all Democrats, urged Parson to call a special session to address gun violence in the city.
At the time, Aldermanic President Megan Green said Parson should urge lawmakers to enact background checks, gun permits and a red flag law that would allow police to address gun ownership by people with mental illness. But Parson never called a special session.
Parson on KCMO, a Kansas City talk radio station, didn鈥檛 comment on the state鈥檚 gun laws and said those responsible were 鈥渁 bunch of criminals, thugs.鈥
Democrats this year have filed several gun-related bills, including legislation that would prohibit those convicted of domestic violence from possessing a firearm, make possession of a high capacity magazine a felony, and create an 鈥渆xtreme risk protection order鈥 that would allow law enforcement to confiscate firearms in certain instances.
The Legislature鈥檚 GOP majority has worked to loosen Missouri鈥檚 gun laws, enacting a permitless carry law in 2016 and declaring certain federal gun laws invalid in 2021. (Federal courts have blocked the law, and the U.S. Supreme Court has refused to allow it to take effect.)
In a sign that any gun restrictions would face steep opposition, Sen. Bill Eigel, a Weldon Spring Republican running for governor, said 鈥渓iberal gun grabbers鈥 were already using the Kansas City tragedy to push a 鈥渞adical gun control agenda.鈥
鈥淣OT IN MISSOURI,鈥 Eigel said. 鈥淥ne good guy with a gun could have stopped the evil criminals who opened fire on the crowd immediately. Guns don鈥檛 kill people. Thugs and criminals kill people.鈥
One of Eigel鈥檚 opponents in the GOP primary, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, said new laws wouldn鈥檛 solve the problem.
鈥淐reating more laws that criminals ignore, while restricting the right of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves, is not the answer,鈥 Ashcroft said in a statement to the Post-Dispatch. 鈥淲e need to enforce the laws on the books if we expect to turn the tide on violent crime.鈥
In a statement Friday, the third Republican running, Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, said, 鈥淢ore laws restricting constitutional rights for law-abiding Missourians isn鈥檛 the answer and will never be the answer. Criminals, no matter what age, don鈥檛 follow laws.鈥
House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, a Democrat who is running for governor and who has pushed for tighter gun laws, said her heart broke for those affected by the shooting.
鈥淲hile we wait for more information, I want to thank law enforcement and first responders for taking action quickly and professionally,鈥 the Springfield Democrat said.
Updated Friday to include a statement from Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe.