Front Sight, Press

ST. LOUIS — Alderman Charles Quincy Troupe’s neighborhood has seen nine homicides in 10 months this year, more than all but one other section of the city.

With gunplay wreaking havoc on his ward, Troupe thinks he has found an answer: citizens arming themselves.

The alderman is pleading with constituents to get guns of their own — and learn how to use them. Troupe, who represents a swatch of north St. Louis, is encouraging residents to apply for concealed weapons permits so they can start carrying a firearm.

The city’s new police chief, among others, worries that introducing even more guns into high-crime areas is a recipe for greater turmoil, not less.

Troupe, however, says he has lost faith in the Police Department and is urging residents to take it upon themselves to protect their homes and property.

"These are God-fearing people. These are law-abiding citizens," Troupe, 72, says. "They have a right to own a gun, and they have a right to carry a gun."…

…Troupe, a former state representative, says he supported concealed weapons legislation while in Jefferson City, and supports it now.

He declined to say whether he carries a gun. He is encouraging others to do so because, he says, some parts of St. Louis are just too dangerous…

…Troupe is hoping to recruit residents from his 1st Ward and around the area to take a firearms safety course, a requirement to qualify for a concealed weapons permit. He has even made his pitch at City Hall — and he says several aldermen have expressed interest in obtaining a permit.

For now, he says he has a list of around 40 residents who have indicated they would like to take the weapons safety course. About 30 of them, he said, are women….

…One north St. Louis woman who already has her concealed weapons permit — and a 9 mm handgun to go with it — is Vivian Jones, who knows Troupe and supports his gun push.

She has been robbed at gunpoint in her daughter’s home in Troupe’s ward. Just recently, she witnessed a gunfire exchange outside her business, a dry cleaners, in the city’s Baden neighborhood, where she lives now.

For her 53rd birthday in June, Jones bought a handgun and began target practicing regularly — and she has the bull’s-eyes to prove it.
"I pray to God that I never have to use this," Jones said, pointing to her waist holster. "But if I do, I’ll have it."…

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO)