A Colt M4 carbine and AR-15 type rifles are on display at the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual meeting in Houston, Texas on May 28, 2022. A Marylander is concerned about carrying an AR-15 near a school bus stop. .
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
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Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
A Colt M4 carbine and AR-15 type rifles are on display at the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual meeting in Houston, Texas on May 28, 2022. A Marylander is concerned about carrying an AR-15 near a school bus stop. .
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
The problem of gun control has escalated in Maryland after a man regularly stood at a school bus stop with an AR-15 rifle in his hands.
For the past few weeks, 20-year-old J’Den Makadori has been walking around his neighborhood in Severn, Maryland, with a long revolver in what he says is a protest against the state’s recent gun control law.
The police say his actions are legal.
McAdory has yet to respond to NPR’s request for comment, but he did say VBAL TV, which first reported the controversy: “A gun can be safe if it’s operated by the right person.” He added, “I really didn’t come here for the kids. I came here to show people that it’s legal.”
Macadori’s outcry sparked fear among families and heightened concerns about open carry, especially around children.
McAdory disagreed with Maryland Gun Safety Act 2023which was adopted on Tuesday. It states that a person is no longer allowed to carry a firearm in a school, medical facility, or in places licensed to sell alcohol or cannabis, such as a stadium, museum, or race track.
Gun rights activists have criticized the law. The National Rifle Association called the law “unconstitutional.” south state.
Wes Moore’s office condemned McAdory’s behavior, adding that it would not change his views on gun control.
“Scaring our children and threatening our communities will not help make Maryland safe. The Governor will not allow these tactics to prevent his administration from taking reasonable steps to protect our communities,” the office said in a statement.
Local families were concerned about Macadori displaying his rifle near the children. Little can be done legally to stop McAdory, despite the fact that Maryland has some of the toughest gun laws in the country.
“I feel like if we don’t do something about it now, then we’ll be talking again, at which point it will be too late,” Jamie Sparrow, a parent of an elementary school student, told WBAL-TV. . “I think lives may be lost (or) people may be injured.”
Ann Arundel County Police said the department received a “numerous” number of calls about an armed member of the community, but that the person is the legal owner of the gun and is allowed to openly carry a rifle.
“Officers are in the area to help ease growing concerns between both students and parents,” the department said in a statement. statements.
Similarly, the principal of a nearby elementary school told the parents that the local police department and the prosecutor’s office had made it clear: “A man is not doing anything illegal by carrying a long gun. He exercises his constitutional rights because he is free to do so. “
Isafina Smith, Principal of Severn Elementary School, added that McAdory agreed to stop visiting the elementary school’s bus stops after being “kindly requested” by the school communications department.
Smith also suggested recommendations on how to “relieve fear and anxiety” if Macadori returns.
Advice included: “Advise your students to ask the man to leave them alone” and “get away from him if he approaches them.”