JEFFERSON CITY (KMOX) - A piece of proposed legislation that's been nearly 10 years in the making has been passed by the Missouri House. It aims to make celebratory gunfire – like what you often hear on the 4th of July and New Year's Eve in St. Louis – illegal.
The bill, which goes by the name "Blair's Law," would make it a felony to fire a gun "in criminal negligence," but does offer multiple exceptions, including hunting, shooting ranges, and self-defense.
It's named after 11-year-old Blair Shanahan Lane of Kansas City. She was killed while she watched her family shoot off fireworks in her uncle's backyard on July 4, 2011. Someone nearby shot a gun to celebrate the Fourth of July and the bullet struck the girl, killing her.
HB 944 passed the Missouri House Monday and heads to the Senate. It's believed to be the first time the legislation has passed, State Rep. Nick Schrorer of O'Fallon told KMOV.
Rep. Mark A. Sharp of Kansas City proposed the law and said it would make cities safer and protect from death, injury and proper damage.
“This really is the year it needs to happen. This is the 10-year anniversary since Blair Shanahan Lane was taken from us, so this year really is the year to do it," Sharp told KOMU.
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