Jindal Will Sign Bill Allowing Guns in Restaurants Serving Alcohol

Governor Bobby Jindal has announced he will sign a controversial bill which will allow handgun permit holders in Louisiana to carry loaded guns into restaurants that serve alcohol.

The Louisiana State Senate approved a bill on Tuesday that eliminates the long-time ban on guns in restaurant establishments that serve alcohol.  In addition, it will allow off-duty police officers to carry weapons into bars. The law passed by the Louisiana state house earlier this year.

The Louisiana State Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill Tuesday that eliminates a long-time ban on guns in restaurants where alcohol is served. The law, passed by the state House earlier this year, would also allow off-duty officers to carry their weapons into bars. Gov. Bobby Jindal’s (R) office said Wednesday he will sign the bill.

The bill received mixed reactions in the legislature, where a pair of former law enforcement officers-turned-legislators took opposite sides on the issue.

The former head of the Louisiana State Police Rep. Terry Landry, D-New Iberia, who voted against the bill, said the mix of alcohol and guns worries him. "I just think it's a bad combination,It causes people not to think rational when they're under the influence of alcohol."

State Rep. Joe Lopinto, a former sheriff’s deputy who sponsored the bill, argued that permit-holders are already banned from carrying when their blood alcohol content exceeds .05 percent.

“I don’t think you should be punished just because you’re walking into a restaurant that happens to serve alcohol. Something could happen there, or something can happen around the corner,” Lopinto said on the floor last month.

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