BATON ROUGE, La. (WGNO) — A invoice that might permit parade-goers in Louisiana to hold hid weapons is shifting ahead, but it surely hasn’t cleared the total legislature simply but.

Home Invoice 393 would change present state legislation, which bans firearms at parades and different permitted occasions. If handed, the measure would permit bystanders, however not parade individuals, to hold hid weapons.

Supporters say it’s about upholding constitutional rights.

“If this legislation prevails, it would permit bystanders to hold weapons,” Cliff Cardone, proprietor of Cardone Regulation Agency stated. “It won’t allow riders to hold weapons.”

However critics say the laws places public security in danger, particularly in crowded, unpredictable parade settings the place households and kids are sometimes current.

“The most important concern is, , having an incident in a crowd,” Michelle Foster with the Metropolitan Crime Fee stated. “You’ve gotten ingesting, you will have youngsters. You realize, the very last thing you need is to have weapons or a battle get away.”

HB 393 handed the Home final month and superior out of a Senate committee this week, with State Senator Regina Barrow casting the lone “no” vote. She raised considerations over security and legal responsibility.

This proposed legislation follows the passage of permit-less hid carry laws final yr, which permits anybody 18 or older to hold a hid weapon in public with out a allow.

Authorized specialists say the measure might override stricter native ordinances, equivalent to New Orleans’ ban on firearms at parades.

“State legislation would, in a way, forestall metropolis legislation. We can’t have a metropolis ordinance that’s extra restrictive than a state statute,” stated Cardone.

The invoice now heads to the total Senate for debate. If handed and signed by the governor, it might be in impact earlier than 2026’s Mardi Gras season.

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