Indianapolis’ city council voted to pass a concealed carry ban during a meeting Monday, despite Indiana’s constitutional carry law that allows citizens to carry concealed handguns without a permit.
The proposal states that no person may carry a handgun in Marion County without a license, nor can it be concealed within that county. The council further raised the gun-purchasing age from 18 to 21 and banned the purchase and sale of so-called “assault weapons.”
“It shall be unlawful for a person to carry a handgun in Marion County with a license that has expired or has been suspended or revoked pursuant to Ind. Code Chapter 35-47-2,” the proposal reads. However, “Notwithstanding subsection (d) above, no person shall carry a concealed firearm in Marion County.”
It further proposes that the provisions will remain in place if any jurisdiction rules them to be “invalid,” according to the proposal. The document argued the concealed carry ban is not a violation of state law or the United States Constitution.
Indiana law prohibits local governments from regulating “the ownership, possession, carrying, transportation, registration, transfer, and storage of firearms, ammunition, and firearm accessories.” The Supreme Court ruled in the Bruen v. NY State Rifle and Pistol Association that laws aimed at preventing Americans exercising their constitutional right to bear arms in public were unconstitutional.
Democratic Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett celebrated the council’s decision, saying the council’s proposal will “prove that Indianapolis and its leadership won’t back down from taking bold steps to protect residents and neighborhoods.”
“Tonight’s Council votes on Proposals 149 and 156 proved that Indianapolis and its leadership won’t back down from taking bold steps to protect residents and neighborhoods,” Hogsett said in a Monday statement. “I applaud the Council’s bipartisan support for funding our partnership with U.S. Attorney Zach Myers, holding the worst of the worst offenders to account.” (RELATED: Half Of The US No Longer Requires A Permit For Concealed Carry)
My statement on tonight’s @IndyCouncil passage of Proposals 149 and 156: pic.twitter.com/HzMuyGp5U3
— Mayor Joe Hogsett (@IndyMayorJoe) July 11, 2023
The state legislature of Indiana repealed its concealed carry law in 2022, which required gun owners to obtain a license to carry a concealed firearm.
The new permitless carry law in Indiana allowed for 22-year-old Elisjsha Dicken to carry his handgun and take down a mall shooter who killed three and injured two. He fired his legally carried pistol at the 20-year-old gunman who attempted to escape the food court after opening fire. 27 states