New Texas Pro-Gun Laws Take Effect Day After Odessa, Texas Shooting

The murderous rampage in Odessa, Texas on Saturday where a gunman shot dead seven persons and wounded 22 others came a day before eight new Texas laws liberalizing the state’s already lax gun laws took effect. Texas is an open carry state.

Seth Ator, a 36 year-old resident of Odessa, was pulled over for a minor signaling infraction by two officers of the Texas Highway Patrol. After stopping his gold Toyota pick-up truck along a stretch of I-20 near Midland, Ator opened fire on the two troopers. He seriously wounded one and sped-off.

As he fled towards Odessa, Ator indiscriminately fired his AR-style rifle out of the pickup. Along the way, he shot dead a worker of the United States Postal Service (USPS) and stole her mail truck.

Ator continued his shooting spree from the stolen USPS truck before being cornered by cops at the parking lot of a local theater at Odessa. He was shot dead in a shootout with officers. Police remain baffled as to Ator’s motive for his murders.

Ator’s killing spree was the second mass shooting in Texas in less than a month. On Aug. 3 in El Paso, Patrick Crusius murdered 22 people, most of the Mexicans and Hispanics, and wounded 24 others in a horrific hate crime.

Crusius is an avowed white supremacist and fan of president Donald Trump. His online manifesto posted a scant 20 minutes before he opened fire and explaining his motivation for murder quoted from Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric. He meekly surrendered to police after his murderous rampage. He was charged with capital murder, which makes him eligible for the death penalty.

The eight new Texas laws impacting guns and gun ownership that went into effect Sept. 1 were among 820 new state laws on this date. These laws were passed by legislators at the Texas State Capitol in Austin from January to May.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) hailed the new Texas gun laws as "highly successful." On the other hand, Texas Gun Sense (a nonprofit advocating reducing gun violence) said the laws "will make schools and communities less safe."

Among others, these pro-gun laws expand gun access and open carry for Texans.

House Bill 1387 relaxes restrictions on the number of school marshals carrying guns while protecting public and private schools. The existing law only allows one armed marshal for every 200 students or for every building.

House Bill 1143 prohibits school districts from restricting how handgun license holders store guns and ammunition in their vehicles in parking areas. House Bill 2363 allows some foster homes to store guns and ammunition, as long as these items are safely stored.

Senate Bill 535 allows Texans to carry guns in churches, synagogues and other places of worship. It also allows these places of worship to prohibit firearms with signage to this effect.

House Bill 302 prevents landlords from using lease agreements to restrict tenants and their guests from carrying firearms. Senate Bill 741 prevents property owners' associations from banning storage of guns on rental properties

House Bill 1177 allows Texans to carry handguns without a license while evacuating or returning from a declared disaster area. House Bill 121 provides a defense for licensed handgun owners that unknowingly enter an establishment prohibiting firearms as long as they leave when asked.