Fairfax, Va. – This week Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed into law five key pieces of legislation that will protect and strengthen the rights of law-abiding gun owners in her state and educate children about gun safety. SB 1113 will allow right-to-carry permit holders to carry a gun into restaurants and bars as long as they don't consume alcohol and as long as the establishments don’t have prohibitive signage posted. This measure will allow RTC permit holders to defend themselves and their families while dining out. Another measure signed into law that will protect the self-defense rights of permit holders is SB 1168. The bill allows gun owners to keep firearms in their locked vehicles while parked in a publicly-accessible parking lot.

“The passage and signage of these sensible, yet crucial bills are major victories for law-abiding gun owners in Arizona,” said Chris W. Cox, NRA chief lobbyist. “Governor Brewer and the bills’ sponsors, State Senators Jack Harper (R-4) and Russell Pearce (R-18), as well as the parking lot bill’s pioneer sponsor, Representative John Kavanagh (R-8), should be commended for their hard work and their staunch support of our Second Amendment freedoms.”

Governor Brewer also signed three other bills of significance this week. SB 1243 makes legal the defensive display of a firearm for the purpose of deescalating a potentially violent conflict. This statute makes it legal for law-abiding gun owners to display their firearm to someone threatening them or a loved one.  SB 1449 also strengthens the rights of gun owners to use a firearm to defend themselves or their loved ones, by making retroactive SB 1145, which was passed in 2006. SB 1145 put the burden of proof back on the state, saying that those who shoot someone in self-defense are to be considered innocent until proven guilty, rather than the other way around.  And SB 1437 adds NRA certified instructors to the list of those qualified to teach gun safety in schools.