JEFFERSON CITY -- With just two days left in Missouri's legislative session, lawmakers are considering a number of bills involving gun rights.
Missouri Senate lawmakers debated lowering the minimum age to obtain a concealed weapons permit to 21 this week.
Currently, applicants for conceal-carry permits must be at least 23 years old, have no felony convictions and pass both a gun training course and background check to qualify.
Missouri began to issue its own concealed weapons permits in 2004. The state also recognizes permits issued by other states for individuals under 23.
Supporters say dropping the age to obtain a concealed-carry permit in Missouri would bring Missouri in line with the majority of states. But critics say it could pose problems for law enforcement officers in some urban areas -- including St. Louis.
The bill, carried in the Senate by Sen. Scott Rupp, R-Wentzville, also includes language that would allow members of the Missouri Legislature and their employees, as well as statewide officials and their employees to carry a concealed weapon in the Capitol, if they have a valid permit.
It also includes an expansion on the state's "Castle Doctrine," which provides a legal defense for killing an unwanted intruder on one's property to include business property owners.
"With this bill, a farmer who owns property not adjacent to their home would be able to protect themselves from violent criminals," Rupp said.
Similar language expanding the "Castle Doctrine" has also been tacked onto an omnibus judiciary bill that is currently moving through the Legislature.
Both the House and the Senate have already approved a measure that would allow a pregnant woman to use deadly force to protect her unborn child.
While the bill passed easily in both chambers, some lawmakers questioned whether the provision is necessary, since a woman already has the right to protect herself.
Sponsoring Rep. Jeanie Riddle, R-Mokane, said the bill was based on of a Michigan case where a pregnant woman was convicted of manslaughter after killing her boyfriend. The woman said her boyfriend threatened her unborn child by punching her in the stomach.
