by Michelle Saxton
Daily Mail Capitol Reporter

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A gun rights advocate said Thursday he was disappointed with Sen. Jay Rockefeller's vote against an amendment to allow firearm owners' concealed weapons permits to be recognized in most other states, but West Virginia's senator said the state should set and follow its own laws.

The U.S. Senate voted 58 to 39 Wednesday in favor of the national reciprocity amendment sponsored by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D, as part of a defense spending bill.

The measure fell just two votes short of the 60 needed to pass.

Rockefeller, D-W.Va., voted against the measure and Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., was absent.

"We're disappointed but frankly not surprised about Senator Rockefeller's vote," West Virginia Citizens Defense League President Jim Mullins said. "He has frequently voted against gun owners on a wide variety of issues."

Rockefeller said he respects the 2nd Amendment and supports the rights of gun owners.

"This amendment would have forced West Virginia to completely defer to other states when it comes to concealed weapons," Rockefeller said in a prepared statement. "Here in West Virginia we respect gun owners, law enforcement, and safety - and I think we ought to be able to set and follow our own good laws on that."

Byrd, who returned to the Senate on Tuesday to cast a vote, is easing back into his duties after an illness, said his communications director, Jesse Jacobs.

"At the request of his doctors and his family he, unfortunately, is not going to be able to be here to make every vote," Jacobs said.

If Byrd had been able to vote on the measure, the recommendation would have been for him to vote no, Jacobs said.

Rockefeller's vote was one for citizens' safety and should be applauded, said Sue Julian, team coordinator of the West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence. The group had spoken with Rockefeller's staff earlier this week about the Thune Amendment, she said.

"We think it would endanger victims of domestic violence, it would endanger public safety and make it more difficult for law enforcement to do their job," Julian said. "Our understanding (is) it would reduce the gun laws in all states to the lowest common denominator of the states with the weakest laws on carrying concealed weapons."

With the national amendment defeated, Mullins' group wants West Virginia to look at its own concealed handgun laws and allow the Mountain State to recognize licenses from most other states so residents can carry weapons when traveling.

"West Virginians will be able to travel in as many states as possible without having to go through the largely financial and bureaucratic hoops," Mullins said of full reciprocity. "We believe that the right to self-defense does not respect state lines just as criminals don't necessarily check your license plates or ask what state you live in before they decide to commit a crime."

West Virginia currently is one of three states that require other states to have a centralized computer database for instantaneous license verification to law enforcement officers at all times as a condition of recognizing those states' concealed weapons licenses, Mullins said. Nevada and Virginia are the other two states, he said.

"There is some possibility that people would either print a counterfeit license or carry a suspended or revoked license," Mullins said of arguments for the database. "But that seems to be more a matter of conjecture than reality. Based on experience this seems to not have been a problem in most other states. I'm not even certain there's been any real problem in West Virginia with that."

Another obstacle, Mullins said, is that West Virginia and Ohio are the only states with reciprocity laws that require other states to enter into formal, written agreements to have their licenses recognized.

West Virginia currently has full reciprocity with 18 states for concealed handgun licenses:  Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia, according to West Virginia Attorney General Darrell McGraw's Web site.

If the computer database and written agreement restrictions were eased, West Virginia could potentially have full reciprocity with 31 to 33 states in all, Mullins said.

The league called on state lawmakers to pass legislation similar to a bill introduced this past session to recognize all other states' licenses to carry concealed pistols or revolvers, with some limitations. Senate Bill 148, sponsored by Sen. Clark Barnes, R-Randolph, died in committee.

"This bill would provide all visitors to West Virginia an equal right to self-defense and provide West Virginia concealed handgun license holders the same right to self-defense in many states with which West Virginia law currently prohibits the establishment of reciprocity," Mullins said. "Our Legislature need not await an act of Congress to do the right thing here in West Virginia."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact writer Michelle Saxton at michelle.sax...@dailymail.com or 304-348-4843.