State anti-gun control law found unconstitutional

The Cape Girardeau Police Department -- and other local law enforcement agencies -- will once again be able to work with their federal partners on firearm crimes without fear of punishment.

Earlier this week, U.S. District Judge Brian Wilmes ruled unconstitutional Missouri's Second Amendment Preservation Act. The statute prohibited state and local law enforcement from enforcing federal gun laws.

"At best, this statute causes confusion among state law enforcement officials who are deputized for federal task force operations, and at worst, is unconstitutional on its face," Wilmes wrote.

Cape Girardeau police chief Wes Blair has been an outspoken opponent of the law since it was passed in 2021. The chief -- who has identified himself numerous times as pro-Second Amendment -- characterized the law as vague. It creates more confusion and makes it difficult for police officers to keep the commmunity safe, he said.

SAPA being ruled unconstitutional was what he and other law enforcement officials were "hoping for," Blair said.

The anti-gun control statute stated that any law enforcement officer knowingly enforcing federal gun laws could be subject to a $50,000 fine. State Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder and area state Reps. Jamie Burger, Barry Hovis and Wayne Wallingford voted in facor of the statute.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced he will be appealing the unconstitutional ruling, in a statement this week. He said he expects a better ruling from a higher court.

In the meantime, Blair said he and others have had discussions with the area federal prosecutor's office to resume working with federal agencies. Traditionally, CGPD officers have been assigned to federal task forces -- most prominently the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives -- to go after violent felons in possession of weapons. Federal charges generally carry harsher sentencing guidelines than state statutes.

"So, they stay out of our communitty and in jail longer," Blair noted.

The most recent suspects in the mass shooting at Hotshots Bar and Grill this past weekend were felons allegedly carrying illegal firearms. Blair said that incident wasn't necessarily tied to the restrictions that SAPA placed on local law enforcement but that those are the incidents police are looking to prevent by working with federal agencies.

"It (SAPA) hindered our ability to make sure that we were getting those people in jail much longer," he said.

Blair said there is still some confusion and loopholes with gun laws on state level that he would like to see clarified.

For example, under current state law, police could not stop a minor who was open-carrying an AR-15-type weapon because there is no minimum age to possess a firearm in Missouri. However, police could stop the same minor for carrying beer.

"It's almost nonsensical, right?" Blair said. "I can do something if you're smoking a cigarette under 21 or if you're drinking a beer and you're under 21. But, if you're carrying a weapon down the street, openly, and you're 14, 15, 10, I can't even talk to you about it."

The chief said he has conversations without state legislators about addressing this issue and that there is legislation pending.