Shuler to carry gun after Giffords attack

ASHEVILLE, NC (AP) — A North Carolina congressman says he’ll carry a gun when he attends public events in his district’s mountain communities after last weekend’s assassination attempt on one of his colleagues.

Rep. Heath Shuler tells WLOS-TV he’ll pack heat for self-protection after the shooting of fellow Democrat Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona.

The Waynesville lawmaker says he’s carried a concealed weapon periodically since someone made a serious threat on his life in 2009, but Shuler says he’ll now make it a practice to carry the permitted handgun when he is away from Capitol Hill, where lawmakers rely on Capitol Police for security.

Shuler says his staff members have also gone through the training and background checks needed for the legal permit to carry concealed handguns.
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Information from: WLOS-TV, http://www.wlos.com/

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