House OKs panic buttons in wake of open carry confrontation

Kory Watkins, coordinator for Open Carry Tarrant County poses for a portrait holding his Romanian AK 47, Thursday, May 29, 2014, in Haltom City, Texas. North Texas gun rights advocates are suing the city of Arlington for amending an ordinance that they claim is discriminatory and infringes upon free speech rights, in the latest sign of growing tensions among gun activists and government forces in Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez) less Kory Watkins, coordinator for Open Carry Tarrant County poses for a portrait holding his Romanian AK 47, Thursday, May 29, 2014, in Haltom City, Texas. North Texas gun rights advocates are suing the city of ... more Photo: Tony Gutierrez, Associated Press Photo: Tony Gutierrez, Associated Press Image 1 of / 12 Caption Close House OKs panic buttons in wake of open carry confrontation 1 / 12 Back to Gallery

AUSTIN - The Texas House approved rules Wednesday to be able to install panic buttons and eject hostile members of the public from their offices, after a confrontation between lawmakers and open carry advocates visiting the Capitol on the opening day of the 2015 session.

"I think that public servants and members of the public ought to feel safe and secure when they come to the Capitol," said Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, who sponsored an amendment to add the safety measures to the house housekeeping rules. "That being said, it came to my attention there was some disagreement as to whether members have to accommodate individuals or groups that are acting in a threatening or belligerent manner."

On Tuesday, around 15 to 20 members of the group Open Carry Tarrant County visited several lawmaker offices urging them to support House Bill 195, which seeks to undo Texas' 125-year ban on the open carry of handguns. Several House members, including Democrats Poncho Nevarez of Eagle Pass and Celia Israel of Austin, said the group hassled them or their staff.

In a video posted to Facebook by Kory Watkins, the gun group's leader, on Tuesday, open carry activists can be heard calling Nevarez "a tyrant to the Constitution" and telling him he "won't be here very long, bro."

"As I understand from my staff briefing, that this very same group came to my office, I just wasn't here," said Martinez Fischer, saying his staff felt "uncomfortable." The eight-term House member said he'd never experienced "advocacy that gets personal and phsycial."

"Sounds to me like it was a very hostile siutation that not only impacted the offices' environment, but also bled out into the hallaway," he said. "And I don't think any of that is approproate."

Reached for comment Wednesday, Watkins said, "We need a panic button for people who don't obey their oath to Constitution."

He also replied to cricitisms from fellow open carry advocate CJ Grisham, who heads the unaffiliated Open Carry Texas, calling Watkins "a malignant cancer for the gun rights movement" and saying his group's actions could actually negatively impact the chances of passing open carry legislation this year.

"I love CJ Grisham. I love Open Carry Texas," said Watkins. "We're all fighting for the same thing."

Watkins reposted a portion of the video on Facebook and YouTube Wednesday morning, in which the cameraman can be heard responding to Nevarez's request for him to leave by stating, "You need to leave my state."

Accompanying the post, Watkins wrote: "Pancho Nevarez, you need to leave Texas! This is for you buddy. Read the Constitution and take your oath seriously. Don't come in here with your fellow democrats and turn Texas in to a anti gun blue state. No!"

Martinez Fischer's rule change formally will allow House lawmakers to eject members of the public from their offices "at their discretion," and also would allow offices to install panic buttons that would immediately alert the Department of Public Safety. Offices could recoup the cost of the DPS buttons through a payment plan.

Martinez Fischer said he supports the state's concealed hangdun license, but had yet made a decision whether to support HB195. Watkins said his group is planning several more visits to lawmaker offices over the next two months.