Tulsa Judge: Concealed Carry A Good Thing

From the Tulsa World Online ~ A new law specifying that district judges can have guns in courthouses is "important and wise legislation," said a Tulsa judge who made headlines when he armed himself during a court commotion a year and a half ago.

The law, signed last week by Gov. Brad Henry, "will greatly enhance court house security for all the citizens," Tulsa County District Judge Tom Thornbrugh said.

The law clarifies what had been the common understanding of the law and adds the component of requiring a judge who wants to keep a firearm at the courthouse to have appropriate training, he said. The law requires a judge to possess a concealed handgun license if he or she is to have a gun on the job.

In 2005, Thornbrugh armed himself in the wake of a disturbance involving deputy sheriffs and an in-custody defendant who was on trial for attempted rape. While jurors were excused from the courtroom, a loud struggle developed behind the closed door of a room where the defendant had been taken for a restroom break. Thornbrugh said he retrieved a pistol from his chambers and positioned himself in the courtroom to watch the door of that room until other deputies arrived. He said he had a permit to carry a concealed weapon and that he kept the gun unloaded in a desk but loaded it before responding to the emergency.

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