This week, Austin State Hospital, a psychiatric facility in Texas, pulled down the “no guns” signs that had long been posted throughout the building. That’s because, thanks to new legislation, guns are now permitted in all 10 of the state-run psychiatric hospitals in Texas.
While guns are still banned in state-licensed general and specialty hospitals, that doesn’t include these 10 hospitals because they aren’t officially licensed by the state.
There are disagreements among officials as to whether new laws simply clarify the rules of previous legislation or establish new parameters. However, the open-carry law enacted at the start of the year, combined with another law that fines state agencies for displaying “no guns” signs, make it clear that state-runs psychiatric hospitals are now legally gun-friendly.
The hospitals are still discouraging visitors from bringing guns onto the premises, though. Austin State Hospital now has signs up asking visitors to leave guns in their cars or at least voluntarily conceal them.
Democratic state representative Celia Israel called this an “unintended consequence” of the open-carry legislation, […]