MAIN CITY LIBRARY TO OPEN MONDAY. WILL CITY SEARCH PATRONS FOR GUNS SINCE IT'S AN EARLY-VOTING SITE?

Special to El Rrun-Rrun

City of Brownsville officials are scrambling to address the public's concerns about firearm possession inside the Main Branch of the City Library following a homicide a week ago Saturday when a 33-year-old man with a history of mental problems shot a 71-year-old man with a Ruger handgun in  the library's lobby over an argument. 

Police arrested Humberto Paz, a military reservist from 2008 to 2016 who was never deployed, for the shooting of 71 year old Vahid Khaledi, a Houston resident who was visiting the library that day. 

City officials – after meeting with police and security experts – say they want to have a "conversation" with the public on how to address future situations.

“We are meeting with our local law enforcement as well as security experts who deal with this type of event and assessing what type of extra measures can be put in place for a facility of this type,” said Roy De Los Santos, District 3 City Commissioner for Brownsville. "We do plan to reach out to the public as well and have conversations so that way we understand what all of their concerns are.”

But the conceal carry in public places may be outside the purview of local officials, according to Erin Gamez, Texas State Representative District 38. She said that the legislature is controlled by pro-gun advocates who will never vote to pass any state law that smacks of gun control.

"I tried to introduce a bill last session that would require a person released from mental institution from being allowed to possess a firearm and I couldn't even get anyone to co-sponsor it and get it in the calendar," she said. "The laws related to conceal carry now allow anyone over 21 to carry a gun in many public places without having to get a license."  

According to the AustinTexas.gov website on con ealed/open carry, "In most cases, public library districts (or cities) may not prohibit individuals from bringing handguns into the library, so long as the weapons are concealed or in a holster. Public libraries are not specifically referenced as a place where weapons are prohibited by state law (see Texas Penal Code §46.03)

And further, "Handguns are not allowed at a library, even for licensed carriers, (only) at the following times: during school-sponsored activities on library grounds (Texas Penal Code §46.03(a)(1)) during early voting or on election day if the library is a polling place (Texas Penal Code §46.03(a)(2)

In Cameron County, early voting starts this Monday, May 20, and continues until Friday, May 24, with election day Tuesday, May 28. Will patrons be subject to metal scans and searches for weapons since the library is a voting site and firearms are specifically prohibited, even for licensed carriers?  

The following is allowed by state law for handgun owners:

Allowed: Public areas of city facilities, like libraries and recreation centers
Beginning September 1, 2021, HB1927 made it legal in Texas for most people 21 or over to carry a handgun in a holster without a permit both openly and/or concealed.

This law modified the previous open carry law from 2016 by eliminating the requirement to have a license to carry.

This means that most people 21 or over may carry a handgun without a license to carry.

Brownsville police confirmed Paz had a history of mental health issues, and that he had posted conspiracy theories against the federal government on the day of the shooting before he went to the library. 

In one posting, he stated a conspiracy theory that: "Since 1910, Tejas has been injuring the scout boys, Scout girls, and Girl Scouts, because Austin Tejas has been abusing the military federal command system. They have been abusing the military federal command system. 

"They have been abusing of the parental control area of the brain with their encephalitis, as you have noticed many of those so-called aren't  uniform service members have they attempt to code to a military law with their encephalitis, those extreme organisms that thrive on the extremes are pussing the brain of innocent scouts, boys and girls, teens, young adults, adults, etc. with their intentions of criminal terroristic to be the fungus. 

"The bacteria thrives in the extremes that is always attempting to hijack the brain with their pussing swells the brain eventually kill the organism....Cycle repeats they have a molecular language that is infected with pussing because it is fungus that they have tattooed on the dermis." 

And to show just how crazy things have gotten, the local city library branches have detectors at the entrance and exits, but they only detect if a book is being surreptitiously taken (stolen) outside the library. 

And even if metal detectors are installed there, the weapons cannot be taken because the gun owners are allowed to bring the weapons inside the public library by state law even if security personnel know they are armed.    

Paz remains jailed on a $3,250,000 bond. City officials announced the library main branch will resume to regular operating hours starting Monday, May 20. 

The library will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends.