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HOT JOBS
Indiana finds little room to compromise when it comes to gun safety, gun right
In 2024, gun violence caused over 72,000 deaths or injuries in the United States. School shootings in the last four years rose 107% compared to the previous 25 years, and in 2024, over 500 shooting incidents resulted in the deaths of four or more people.
Despite these statistics, the majority of Indiana lawmakers advocate for gun rights every session. For example, in 2022,House Bill 1296 allowed any eligible person to obtain or possess a firearm without needing a permit or license.
Several different organizations, such as Moms Demand Action, have lobbied for stricter gun safety laws and received no such compromise.
During this year’s session, House Bill 1676 sought to decrease the number of gun-related accidents by increasing the felony level from six to five for a person who fails to secure their firearm—a simple bill that may have decreased the likelihood of firearm accidents. However, the bill failed to make it out of committee.
Jody Madeira, a law professor at Indiana University, explained why it is so difficult for Indiana to pass gun control laws.
“Indiana legislators, although they are so reasonable in other ways, are just so extreme with gun rights that there is no compromise,” Madeira said.
“Although Indiana talks a good game about protecting firearm rights and only making sure that ‘rights are violated’ when it’s the last possible resort, to protect mental health or to protect the most vulnerable, they’re still not willing to compromise anyone’s access to firearms.
Madeira gave her reasoning as to the motive behind Indiana gun laws being so one sided.
“(Indiana legislators) have seen what happens when parents are held liable in other states for neglectfully allowing a minor to access a firearm or neglecting to safeguard it in the presence of an adult who they know is a danger to themselves or others,” Madeira said. “They just don’t want people to take away guns, period.”
Pierre Atlas, director of the master’s of public affairs program at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University Indianapolis, attributes the lack of compromise to an increase in extreme political stances.
“The bottom line is, increasingly over the years, the debate over gun rights vs. gun regulations has become increasingly partisan,” Atlas said. “The Republican Party and the National Rifle Association and the firearms manufacturers have increasingly come to be on one side of the debate.
“And a lot of it is because of the linkage between partisan politics, the partisan divide, and the debate over guns,” he said. “This isn’t the way it used to be, even in Indiana, but that’s definitely the way it is today.”
According to NPR, the National Rifle Association (NRA) was founded in 1871 as a recreational group designed to “educate the next generation of marksmen, whether for war or hunting or recreational target shooting.”
The NRA adopted a gun safety and education position and worked closely with the government and the Army. But after the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, gun control movements becamemore mainstream than ever. The NRA opposed gun control and created a lobbying group whose leader, Harlon Carter said, “You don’t stop crime by attacking guns, you stop crime by stopping criminals.”
As the idea of gun control laws grew even more divisive, the NRA continued to grow in scale, scope and political power. In 2000, former actor and the president of the NRA, Charlton Heston, spoke at the NRA convention in response to political candidates advocating for stricter gun control.
“As we set out this year to defeat the divisive forces that would take freedom away, I want to say those fighting words for everyone within the sound of my voice to hear and to heed, and especially for you, Mr. Gore (2000 presidential candidate): ‘From my cold, dead hands!'”
The NRA continued on the heels of Heston’s linguistically persuasive footsteps with Wayne LaPierre, former executive vice president, who said: “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”
The NRA’s ideology captivated millions of Americans. The organization has more than 5 million members, and Madeira credits much of Indiana’s gun legislation to the organization’s widespread ideals.
As of 2023, the Pew Research Center finds that 80% of poll-participating Americans believe that people who make large campaign contributions have too much decision-making influence. Atlas factors in how financial incentives may be swaying lawmakers.
“Frankly, the influence of the NRA and other pro-gun-rights groups that endorse candidates provide money to candidates nationally, at the state level. It’s an intimidating factor. They reward people who support their side and go after people who don’t,” Atlas said. “And so there is a sense of intimidation and a kind of carrot-and-stick approach from that.”
The NRA spent over $11 million specifically for lobbying in the last five years, and in the 2024 election cycle gave over $600,000to congressional candidates. Of those candidates, 99.98% of the recipients were Republican.
U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Jim Baird, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Mark Messmer, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Erin Houchins, R-Indiana, and U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Indiana, all received anywhere from $1,000 to $5,450.
On top of the NRA and monetary influence, Atlas says some Indiana lawmakers may also be making these decisions based on a vocal minority among constituents.
“If you look at public opinion, you can have a majority of people feeling a particular way, but what really matters in getting things translated into political action is intensity,” Atlas said. “And so a lot of the people who are moderate on guns, or moderate on any political issue, are not the ones that really mobilize.”
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and Atlas says lawmakers have overestimated how much grease is needed.
“The people who are the most ardent gun-rights, pro-gun rights people, are much more passionate about it than other gun owners. They are sort of the squeaky wheel or the loudest voice in the room, and that is one factor,” Atlas said. “I think there’s also a sense among a lot of politicians at the state and federal level, there is an assumption, that all gun owners feel as strongly as the most ardent gun-rights people do. And if you go against the hard core, you will be punished.”
Other states, Madeira says, have worked to find a healthier balance between gun rights and gun safety.
“And let me just say there are some states that are really good at walking this line between protecting firearm rights and protecting safety,” Madeira said. “Again, no one wants to take guns away when it’s not warranted. People pay a lot of money for them, they use them for hobbies, they carry them, and those people are responsible. But states like Florida, Michigan, realize even though the Second Amendment is really important, there are some limits to behaviors they can exhibit when they aren’t healthy.”
Is there really no compromise?
Former Indiana Rep. Jerry Torr, R-Carmel, who worked on severalgun bills at the Statehouse, disagrees with the notion that state lawmakers have not compromised on gun legislation.
“First of all, we have (compromised) where it’s been reasonable,” Torr said. “Indiana became the second state to have a red-flag law, and just a couple years ago, we did a compromise with a Democrat member to outlaw trigger switches.”
Red flag laws allow law enforcement or family members to petition a court to remove firearms from individuals who may be a danger to themselves or others. Trigger switches are small devices that allow semi-automatic firearms to shoot like fully automatic ones. Torr says other gun-control laws would do nothing to protect the public.
“The reason it seems to some people, and mostly people who don’t know much about firearms, frankly, that there’s not a lot of compromise is because a lot of the bills that were proposed by groups like Moms Demand Action, it would make them feel good, make them feel like they’re doing something, but it wouldn’t actually do anything,”
Many lobbying groups advocate for stricter gun control, with one of the most common pleas being for universal background checks. Torr says this solves nothing.
“For instance, they talk a lot about universal background checks. Well, if you go to a gun store and buy a gun, you have to have a federal background check. Private sales don’t require that in Indiana,” Torr said. “They say, ‘Well, that would keep firearms out of the hands of people that shouldn’t have them.’ Well, would it really? Or would it just create an obstacle for law abiding citizens?”
Some gun-control advocates refer to drug laws and how many gun-rights enthusiasts are quick to regulate drugs but not gunsl. Torr rejects this argument.
“I just don’t think it’s a fair comparison. The difference is, criminal use of a firearm is already illegal,” Torr said. “Using one to hold up a bank or a grocery store is illegal. The only thing that’s not illegal is a proper person actually possessing a firearm. So I just don’t think that’s a fair comparison at all.”
Outside of what Torr says is the vocal minority, he doesn’t believe gun control is something most constituents want.
“Other than small groups like Moms Demand Action, in my 28 years in the legislature, I didn’t get a whole lot of emails or comments against guns or to restrict them more,” Torr said. “It was a very small minority that wanted that.”
Children and guns
Alexandra Rollo is the leader of Indiana’s chapter of Moms Demand Action, an organization with the goal of increasing the number of people who practice gun safety.
When asked about gun control, Rollo said she would rather be associated with the terms “gun sense” and “gun safety.”
“This isn’t about taking away guns in safe people’s hands,” she said. “This isn’t about taking guns away from people using common sense. This is about making the world safe from the people who aren’t.”
In 2024, firearms killed or injured over 5,000 minors across the nation.
“As far as gun sense, gun safety, why are we interested in this work? It’s because (guns) are the No. 1 killer of kids,” Rollo said. “Right there should motivate anyone to care regardless of party, regardless of anything. We have something in our hands that we can do something about that would make it where children’s lives are safer.”
The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Healthconfirmed this statistic and also stated that gun deaths among minors have increased by 103% since 2013.
“My husband is a career soldier, and his co-worker is also a career soldier—her child shot her other child,” Rollo said. “A 5-year-old shot a 3-year-old to death with a gun that the child found on someone else’s dresser, and there’s no crime.”
IU law professor Madeira agreed that the responsibility falls in the lap of lawmakers to keep citizens safe.
“To be pro gun rights and pro Second Amendment is to be pro safety as well because every right has limits, every right has responsibilities,” Madeira said. “The state’s right to step in and make sure that you’re not in danger to yourself or others—sometimes that right is higher than the Second Amendment in particular instances. Other states see that, but Indiana has a very hard time seeing that.”
Rep. Earl Harris, D-East Chicago, has worked on several gun-related bills throughout his tenure. Most recently, House Bill 1095, a gun crime enforcement bill, was signed into law by the Gov. Mike Braun on April 1.
The bill does not change much about Indiana’s gun landscape but garnered bipartisan support by expanding how many counties the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force can operate in.
Harris believes there should be stricter laws for getting guns out of the hands of children.
“Yeah, that’s an easy answer,” Harris said, “and that’s one of the things that we have to think about is access to young children that may not know that they are putting themselves in a dangerous situation.”
Harris attributed some of these incidents to a lack of firearm education and the cultural image guns have among children.
“You know we all grew up playing cops and robbers and we had our little toy guns, and I remember having a little rubber dart gun and all that,” Harris said. “Sometimes I don’t know if young children understand the reality of this gun they happen to pick up in those situations is not a toy gun, it’s actually a real gun that can do real damage.”
Harris offered further clarification as to what his position is and how to make the violence stop.
“Again, I’m not anti gun,” Harris said. “I don’t think guns should disappear, but I think we have to have something in place in terms of protection related to who has an opportunity to have gun ownership.”
Firearm sales in the U.S. have declined every year since 2020, yet there were 13.6 million firearms purchased in 2024.
Gun-rights advocates hold fast
Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, is perhaps the staunchest gun-rights advocate serving in the Statehouse. In the most recent legislative session, he proposed House Bill 1170, a bill with very few exceptions, that eliminates any and all gun-free zones in the state.
His passion for gun advocacy has led to some negative attention, as last year TheStatehouseFile.com reported on the way Lucas conversed with several teenagers at the Statehouse protesting gun violence with Students Demand Action. While speaking about how many Americans carry firearms, he flashed his holstered gun at the students, catching the eye of national news outlets.
Lucas said he does not believe he or his colleagues can ever pass a law that will end gun violence.
“I don’t believe that gun control laws stop people that are inclined to commit crimes, and history has shown that,” Lucas said.
Lucas says he does not think there is a gun-control problem in Indiana or the U.S. His position is based on how few people are murdered by firearms each year compared to the number of people who live in the country at large.
“First thing I want to make clear, and every rational person can agree on this, every death is tragic,” Lucas said “But when you look at gun violence and gun deaths, statistically, they’re such a small part of society. We have 340 million Americans and 15,000 people, I think, are murdered by firearms each year.”
The website World Population Review did find that over 15,000 Americans were murdered with firearms in 2023. But Pew Research reports that “the gun death rate in the U.S. is much higher than in most other nations, particularly developed nations.” The majority of gun-related deaths are the result of suicide.
Despite complaints among many Americans, Lucas and his colleagues hold fast to their approach on gun safety.
“Again, law is not going to stop someone from doing something stupid. It just doesn’t work that way. For years, I’ve offered legislation to encourage people to take firearm training, safety training. [In] 2023, it was House Bill 1347, and I know I’ve offered that several times,” Lucas said. “Rep. Dave Paul [R-Norman] had a very similar bill offered this year. I would much rather encourage people to take firearm safety training than put a law on the books that isn’t going to stop anybody.”
Regardless of policy position, both sides agree the goal is to keep citizens safe. Rep. Harris spoke on that motivation and about the progress he says his bill will make.
“The goal is connected to making things safer for citizens,” Harris said. “You know one of the things is related to House Bill 1095 that I author, is working on getting illegal guns off the street. That’s one of the realities … (Guns exist,) and it makes life a little bit more dangerous and puts people at more risk.”
Caleb Crockett is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news site powered by Franklin College journalism students.
In 2024, gun violence caused over 72,000 deaths or injuries in the United States. School shootings in the last four years rose 107% compared to the previous 25 years, and in 2024, over 500 shooting incidents resulted in the deaths of four or more people.
Despite these statistics, the majority of Indiana lawmakers advocate for gun rights every session. For example, in 2022,House Bill 1296 allowed any eligible person to obtain or possess a firearm without needing a permit or license.
Several different organizations, such as Moms Demand Action, have lobbied for stricter gun safety laws and received no such compromise.
During this year’s session, House Bill 1676 sought to decrease the number of gun-related accidents by increasing the felony level from six to five for a person who fails to secure their firearm—a simple bill that may have decreased the likelihood of firearm accidents. However, the bill failed to make it out of committee.
Jody Madeira, a law professor at Indiana University, explained why it is so difficult for Indiana to pass gun control laws.
“Indiana legislators, although they are so reasonable in other ways, are just so extreme with gun rights that there is no compromise,” Madeira said.
“Although Indiana talks a good game about protecting firearm rights and only making sure that ‘rights are violated’ when it’s the last possible resort, to protect mental health or to protect the most vulnerable, they’re still not willing to compromise anyone’s access to firearms.
Madeira gave her reasoning as to the motive behind Indiana gun laws being so one sided.
“(Indiana legislators) have seen what happens when parents are held liable in other states for neglectfully allowing a minor to access a firearm or neglecting to safeguard it in the presence of an adult who they know is a danger to themselves or others,” Madeira said. “They just don’t want people to take away guns, period.”
Pierre Atlas, director of the master’s of public affairs program at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University Indianapolis, attributes the lack of compromise to an increase in extreme political stances.
“The bottom line is, increasingly over the years, the debate over gun rights vs. gun regulations has become increasingly partisan,” Atlas said. “The Republican Party and the National Rifle Association and the firearms manufacturers have increasingly come to be on one side of the debate.
“And a lot of it is because of the linkage between partisan politics, the partisan divide, and the debate over guns,” he said. “This isn’t the way it used to be, even in Indiana, but that’s definitely the way it is today.”
According to NPR, the National Rifle Association (NRA) was founded in 1871 as a recreational group designed to “educate the next generation of marksmen, whether for war or hunting or recreational target shooting.”
The NRA adopted a gun safety and education position and worked closely with the government and the Army. But after the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, gun control movements becamemore mainstream than ever. The NRA opposed gun control and created a lobbying group whose leader, Harlon Carter said, “You don’t stop crime by attacking guns, you stop crime by stopping criminals.”
As the idea of gun control laws grew even more divisive, the NRA continued to grow in scale, scope and political power. In 2000, former actor and the president of the NRA, Charlton Heston, spoke at the NRA convention in response to political candidates advocating for stricter gun control.
“As we set out this year to defeat the divisive forces that would take freedom away, I want to say those fighting words for everyone within the sound of my voice to hear and to heed, and especially for you, Mr. Gore (2000 presidential candidate): ‘From my cold, dead hands!'”
The NRA continued on the heels of Heston’s linguistically persuasive footsteps with Wayne LaPierre, former executive vice president, who said: “The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”
The NRA’s ideology captivated millions of Americans. The organization has more than 5 million members, and Madeira credits much of Indiana’s gun legislation to the organization’s widespread ideals.
As of 2023, the Pew Research Center finds that 80% of poll-participating Americans believe that people who make large campaign contributions have too much decision-making influence. Atlas factors in how financial incentives may be swaying lawmakers.
“Frankly, the influence of the NRA and other pro-gun-rights groups that endorse candidates provide money to candidates nationally, at the state level. It’s an intimidating factor. They reward people who support their side and go after people who don’t,” Atlas said. “And so there is a sense of intimidation and a kind of carrot-and-stick approach from that.”
The NRA spent over $11 million specifically for lobbying in the last five years, and in the 2024 election cycle gave over $600,000to congressional candidates. Of those candidates, 99.98% of the recipients were Republican.
U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Jim Baird, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Mark Messmer, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Indiana, U.S. Rep. Erin Houchins, R-Indiana, and U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Indiana, all received anywhere from $1,000 to $5,450.
On top of the NRA and monetary influence, Atlas says some Indiana lawmakers may also be making these decisions based on a vocal minority among constituents.
“If you look at public opinion, you can have a majority of people feeling a particular way, but what really matters in getting things translated into political action is intensity,” Atlas said. “And so a lot of the people who are moderate on guns, or moderate on any political issue, are not the ones that really mobilize.”
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and Atlas says lawmakers have overestimated how much grease is needed.
“The people who are the most ardent gun-rights, pro-gun rights people, are much more passionate about it than other gun owners. They are sort of the squeaky wheel or the loudest voice in the room, and that is one factor,” Atlas said. “I think there’s also a sense among a lot of politicians at the state and federal level, there is an assumption, that all gun owners feel as strongly as the most ardent gun-rights people do. And if you go against the hard core, you will be punished.”
Other states, Madeira says, have worked to find a healthier balance between gun rights and gun safety.
“And let me just say there are some states that are really good at walking this line between protecting firearm rights and protecting safety,” Madeira said. “Again, no one wants to take guns away when it’s not warranted. People pay a lot of money for them, they use them for hobbies, they carry them, and those people are responsible. But states like Florida, Michigan, realize even though the Second Amendment is really important, there are some limits to behaviors they can exhibit when they aren’t healthy.”
Is there really no compromise?
Former Indiana Rep. Jerry Torr, R-Carmel, who worked on severalgun bills at the Statehouse, disagrees with the notion that state lawmakers have not compromised on gun legislation.
“First of all, we have (compromised) where it’s been reasonable,” Torr said. “Indiana became the second state to have a red-flag law, and just a couple years ago, we did a compromise with a Democrat member to outlaw trigger switches.”
Red flag laws allow law enforcement or family members to petition a court to remove firearms from individuals who may be a danger to themselves or others. Trigger switches are small devices that allow semi-automatic firearms to shoot like fully automatic ones. Torr says other gun-control laws would do nothing to protect the public.
“The reason it seems to some people, and mostly people who don’t know much about firearms, frankly, that there’s not a lot of compromise is because a lot of the bills that were proposed by groups like Moms Demand Action, it would make them feel good, make them feel like they’re doing something, but it wouldn’t actually do anything,”
Many lobbying groups advocate for stricter gun control, with one of the most common pleas being for universal background checks. Torr says this solves nothing.
“For instance, they talk a lot about universal background checks. Well, if you go to a gun store and buy a gun, you have to have a federal background check. Private sales don’t require that in Indiana,” Torr said. “They say, ‘Well, that would keep firearms out of the hands of people that shouldn’t have them.’ Well, would it really? Or would it just create an obstacle for law abiding citizens?”
Some gun-control advocates refer to drug laws and how many gun-rights enthusiasts are quick to regulate drugs but not gunsl. Torr rejects this argument.
“I just don’t think it’s a fair comparison. The difference is, criminal use of a firearm is already illegal,” Torr said. “Using one to hold up a bank or a grocery store is illegal. The only thing that’s not illegal is a proper person actually possessing a firearm. So I just don’t think that’s a fair comparison at all.”
Outside of what Torr says is the vocal minority, he doesn’t believe gun control is something most constituents want.
“Other than small groups like Moms Demand Action, in my 28 years in the legislature, I didn’t get a whole lot of emails or comments against guns or to restrict them more,” Torr said. “It was a very small minority that wanted that.”
Children and guns
Alexandra Rollo is the leader of Indiana’s chapter of Moms Demand Action, an organization with the goal of increasing the number of people who practice gun safety.
When asked about gun control, Rollo said she would rather be associated with the terms “gun sense” and “gun safety.”
“This isn’t about taking away guns in safe people’s hands,” she said. “This isn’t about taking guns away from people using common sense. This is about making the world safe from the people who aren’t.”
In 2024, firearms killed or injured over 5,000 minors across the nation.
“As far as gun sense, gun safety, why are we interested in this work? It’s because (guns) are the No. 1 killer of kids,” Rollo said. “Right there should motivate anyone to care regardless of party, regardless of anything. We have something in our hands that we can do something about that would make it where children’s lives are safer.”
The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Healthconfirmed this statistic and also stated that gun deaths among minors have increased by 103% since 2013.
“My husband is a career soldier, and his co-worker is also a career soldier—her child shot her other child,” Rollo said. “A 5-year-old shot a 3-year-old to death with a gun that the child found on someone else’s dresser, and there’s no crime.”
IU law professor Madeira agreed that the responsibility falls in the lap of lawmakers to keep citizens safe.
“To be pro gun rights and pro Second Amendment is to be pro safety as well because every right has limits, every right has responsibilities,” Madeira said. “The state’s right to step in and make sure that you’re not in danger to yourself or others—sometimes that right is higher than the Second Amendment in particular instances. Other states see that, but Indiana has a very hard time seeing that.”
Rep. Earl Harris, D-East Chicago, has worked on several gun-related bills throughout his tenure. Most recently, House Bill 1095, a gun crime enforcement bill, was signed into law by the Gov. Mike Braun on April 1.
The bill does not change much about Indiana’s gun landscape but garnered bipartisan support by expanding how many counties the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force can operate in.
Harris believes there should be stricter laws for getting guns out of the hands of children.
“Yeah, that’s an easy answer,” Harris said, “and that’s one of the things that we have to think about is access to young children that may not know that they are putting themselves in a dangerous situation.”
Harris attributed some of these incidents to a lack of firearm education and the cultural image guns have among children.
“You know we all grew up playing cops and robbers and we had our little toy guns, and I remember having a little rubber dart gun and all that,” Harris said. “Sometimes I don’t know if young children understand the reality of this gun they happen to pick up in those situations is not a toy gun, it’s actually a real gun that can do real damage.”
Harris offered further clarification as to what his position is and how to make the violence stop.
“Again, I’m not anti gun,” Harris said. “I don’t think guns should disappear, but I think we have to have something in place in terms of protection related to who has an opportunity to have gun ownership.”
Firearm sales in the U.S. have declined every year since 2020, yet there were 13.6 million firearms purchased in 2024.
Gun-rights advocates hold fast
Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, is perhaps the staunchest gun-rights advocate serving in the Statehouse. In the most recent legislative session, he proposed House Bill 1170, a bill with very few exceptions, that eliminates any and all gun-free zones in the state.
His passion for gun advocacy has led to some negative attention, as last year TheStatehouseFile.com reported on the way Lucas conversed with several teenagers at the Statehouse protesting gun violence with Students Demand Action. While speaking about how many Americans carry firearms, he flashed his holstered gun at the students, catching the eye of national news outlets.
Lucas said he does not believe he or his colleagues can ever pass a law that will end gun violence.
“I don’t believe that gun control laws stop people that are inclined to commit crimes, and history has shown that,” Lucas said.
Lucas says he does not think there is a gun-control problem in Indiana or the U.S. His position is based on how few people are murdered by firearms each year compared to the number of people who live in the country at large.
“First thing I want to make clear, and every rational person can agree on this, every death is tragic,” Lucas said “But when you look at gun violence and gun deaths, statistically, they’re such a small part of society. We have 340 million Americans and 15,000 people, I think, are murdered by firearms each year.”
The website World Population Review did find that over 15,000 Americans were murdered with firearms in 2023. But Pew Research reports that “the gun death rate in the U.S. is much higher than in most other nations, particularly developed nations.” The majority of gun-related deaths are the result of suicide.
Despite complaints among many Americans, Lucas and his colleagues hold fast to their approach on gun safety.
“Again, law is not going to stop someone from doing something stupid. It just doesn’t work that way. For years, I’ve offered legislation to encourage people to take firearm training, safety training. [In] 2023, it was House Bill 1347, and I know I’ve offered that several times,” Lucas said. “Rep. Dave Paul [R-Norman] had a very similar bill offered this year. I would much rather encourage people to take firearm safety training than put a law on the books that isn’t going to stop anybody.”
Regardless of policy position, both sides agree the goal is to keep citizens safe. Rep. Harris spoke on that motivation and about the progress he says his bill will make.
“The goal is connected to making things safer for citizens,” Harris said. “You know one of the things is related to House Bill 1095 that I author, is working on getting illegal guns off the street. That’s one of the realities … (Guns exist,) and it makes life a little bit more dangerous and puts people at more risk.”
Caleb Crockett is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news site powered by Franklin College journalism students.
Supporting Hoosier Veterans
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ALL IN THE FAMILY
GAVEL GAMUT
By Jim Redwine
www.jamesmredwine.com
(Week of 26 May 2025)
ALL IN THE FAMILY
The Book of Ruth has four pages. One paragraph of one page is perhaps the Bible’s most often recited passage by brides and grooms:
“Entreat me not to leave you or to return from following you;
For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people, and your God my God;
Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried.”
Ruth 1:16-17
These beautiful promises were made by Ruth to her mother-in-law Naomi. The family and cultural inter-connections are closely intertwined. Ironically, Naomi, her husband, Elimelech, and their two sons, Mahlou and Chilion, were originally Ephrathites who lived in Bethlehem in Judah, what is now not only the birthplace of Jesus but also Palestine. A further historical irony is that just as today there is famine in Gaza, part of Palestine, in Naomi family’s time “the judges” (the government?) “ruled there was a famine in the land”. So, Naomi and her family left Bethlehem and “sojourned” to the country of Moab that was in what is now the country of Jordan.
Naomi’s sons both married Moabite women but then both sons and Elimelech died. Thereafter, times were hard for Naomi and her daughters-in-law when Naomi heard that, “the Lord had visited his people (in Bethlehem) and given them food”. So, Naomi, Ruth and Orpah decided to seek new lives in Bethlehem. While Orpah turned back to Moab, Naomi and Ruth ventured on to Bethlehem where Naomi’s husband still had a wealthy Israeli kinsman named Boaz. Ruth and Boaz eventually married and had a son named Obed. Obed fathered Jesse who fathered Israel’s most famous king, David. The genetics of the Israeli-Palestinian Naomi, the Moabite (Jordanian) Ruth, the Israeli-Palestinian Boaz and the Israeli King David are closely related. They are all of Semitic culture and history and are all deeply embedded in the general genealogy and geography of the area. In essence, they are all related, leading to possible fratricide or genocide if indiscriminate slaughter should occur.
Yet, according to many authorities that is exactly what the Zionists of Israel are doing today as a matter of government policy. As former Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, recently stated in an interview on BBC, what Israel is doing in Gaza is, “very close to a war crime”. And more evidence of Israel’s intent comes from Israeli Cabinet Members, Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, who have publicly called for the “conquest and depopulation of Gaza”.
More graphically, as recently reported in The Washington Post’s World View Newsletter by reporter Ishaan Tharoor, former Israeli Defense Force general and current head of the Democrats Party in Israel, Yair Golan, stated:
“Israel is on the way to becoming a pariah state among nations if it doesn’t return to behaving like a sane country. A sane country doesn’t engage in fighting against civilians, doesn’t kill babies as a hobby and doesn’t set the expulsion of a population as a goal.”
As for America, with the cooperation of Egypt and other allies, we should immediately force massive amounts of humanitarian aid into Gaza through Egypt. America should also guarantee the accessibility and safety of impartial international journalists into Gaza so the world can witness the facts on the ground. And, the immediate cessation of America’s enablement of the killing and destruction by Israel in Gaza should be a priority.
Not only are the descendants of Ruth and Naomi responsible for and entitled to humane treatment, the United States, as part of the human family, must help assure such outcomes.
For more Gavel Gamut articles go to www.jamesmredwine.com
EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT
FOOTNOTE: EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
Otters overcome six-run deficit, fall in extras
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Evansville Otters (5-7) fell despite a strong comeback attempt to the Schaumburg Boomers (8-5) in the series finale, 12-8.
The Otters started well and hit the run column first. JJ Cruz drew a walk before a Graham Brown double put runners on second and third. LJ Jones then hit a sacrifice fly to left to drive in Cruz to make it 1-0. A second run came in when George Callil was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, giving Evansville a 2-0 advantage after one.
The score remained 2-0 throughout the first three innings, thanks to Jon Beymer retiring the first nine batters he faced to begin his outing.
In the fourth, Schaumburg struck for five, three of which came on a three-run home run. The Boomers then followed that up with three more runs in the fifth that came off another home run.
After five, Evansville trailed 8-2. The Otters fought back in the sixth frame however, plating three runs. Brown recorded his fourth hit of the day with an RBI single that sent home Ty Crittenberger. He was followed up by Pavin Parks, who came through with an RBI double. After the home half, Evansville had narrowed the Schaumburg advantage to 8-5.
The bullpen continued to shut down the Boomers offense as Evansville scored one run in each of the seventh and eighth innings. Heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, Evansville was down 8-7.
Alain Camou came off the bench to pinch hit and reached on an error. He reached third thanks to a wild pitch and sacrifice bunt. Keenan Taylor delivered in the clutch once again with a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 8-8.
In the top of the tenth, Schaumburg scored four, all with two outs. The Otters loaded the bases in the home half of the tenth, but were held off the board.
Brown finished his day reaching six times and going 4-for-4 with a pair of doubles, two singles, an RBI and two walks.
Evansville struck out 17 Boomer hitters, a new season-high. Beymer ended his day with 10 strikeouts and now leads the Frontier League with 23 on the season.
Mustafa tapped as USI Vice President for Student Affairs
Following a national search, Dr. Abeer Mustafa has been selected as Vice President for Student Affairs at the University of Southern Indiana, effective Monday, June 23.
“Dr. Mustafa brings a wealth of knowledge to the University and will serve us well as Vice President for Student Affairs,” said USI President Steve Bridges. “Her extensive background in student affairs, combined with her genuine passion for supporting students and fostering divergent ideas, aligns perfectly with USI’s mission and values. I’m confident her leadership will make a lasting, positive impact on our students and the entire campus community.”
Most recently, Mustafa served as Senior Advisor to the Chancellor at the University of Tennessee Southern. She is a seasoned higher education leader with over two decades of experience advancing student success, enrollment management and strategic planning. She has served in senior leadership roles at institutions across the country where she collaborated closely with executive leadership to shape inclusive, data-informed strategies supporting student retention, wellness and engagement. Previously, she served as Associate Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs at the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, and before that, Executive Director at California State University, Chico.
With a strong background in strategic planning, she has helped institutions align organizational priorities with measurable outcomes that drive institutional effectiveness and student success.
“I am deeply honored to be chosen to join USI and become part of this vibrant community committed to academic excellence and student engagement,” says Mustafa. “My vision is to develop the division’s organizational priorities to drive toward the measurable outcomes that propagate institutional effectiveness and the central goal of student success. My goal is to collaborate across campus to remove barriers, strengthen engagement, and ensure every student has the resources, encouragement and opportunities needed to succeed both inside and outside the classroom.”
As the University’s chief student affairs officer, Mustafa will provide intellectual and administrative leadership, guiding the University’s Student Affairs services and programs as well as University-wide initiatives. Also providing programmatic, assessment and financial leadership for Student Affairs departments, she will serve as an advocate for all students in the University community.
Student Affairs departments include Counseling and Psychological Services; Dean of Students Office; Housing and Residence Life; Multicultural Center; Recreation, Fitness and Wellness Center; Religious Life; Center for Campus Life; and USI Deaconess Clinic. Mustafa will report to the President, is part of President’s Council and Provost’s Council, and will work closely with faculty, staff, students and community leaders on all matters affecting the student experience.
Outside of work, Mustafa enjoys traveling, cooking, cheering on Houston sports teams and spending time with family—including her twin boys, husband and loyal dog Max.
A veteran of the U.S. Army, Mustafa holds a doctorate degree in organizational leadership from Oakland City University; master’s degrees in legal studies and business administration from the University of Tennessee School of Law and Sam Houston State University, respectively; and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Houston-Downtown.
Attorney General Todd Rokita rallies Indy 500 fans to stay alert for signs of human trafficking
As the 109th Indianapolis 500, the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, approaches on May 25, 2025, Attorney General Todd Rokita calls on Hoosiers and visitors to remain alert for signs of human trafficking. Large-scale events like the Indy 500, which draw hundreds of thousands of spectators, are known to create increased demand for trafficked individuals forced into manual labor, commercial sex acts, or other exploitative services.
“Spectator events of this magnitude are prime targets for human traffickers looking to exploit vulnerable individuals,” said Attorney General Rokita. “As we celebrate the thrill of the Indy 500, we must keep our eyes open for signs of human trafficking. By reporting suspicious actions to law enforcement, we can help stop these predators and rescue victims.”
Human trafficking, a modern form of slavery, occurs when individuals are coerced, deceived, or forced into providing labor or services. The U.S. State Department identifies key signs of trafficking, including individuals who:
- Appear submissive, fearful, or unable to speak freely
- Live in cramped or poor conditions, often with their employer
- Show signs of physical abuse, malnourishment, or restricted freedom
- Provide scripted or rehearsed answers when questioned
- Are minors engaged in commercial sex acts
Attorney General Rokita encourages immediate reporting of suspected trafficking to local law enforcement or the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
“Human trafficking thrives in the shadows, but we’re shining a light on it,” said Rokita. “From protecting victims to equipping families and holding traffickers accountable, our office is committed to rooting out this evil enterprise.”
As the Indy 500 coincides with National Missing Children’s Day on May 25, Rokita encourages attendees to stay proactive.