
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 18, 1995                   TAG: 9506230005
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: SARAH HUNTLEY
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

`TOO MANY PEOPLE ... TOO MANY GUNS'

J.R. Huddle, a former stable owner in Roanoke County, applied for a concealed weapon permit in April 1994 and was denied.

Huddle said he requested the permit after he was threatened for testifying in a court case. As the owner of Centura Stables on Martins Creek Road, Huddle, 51, often appeared as an expert witness. He said he wanted the gun to protect himself.

But after the judge denied his application, Huddle reconsidered his position. Weapon laws have gotten too loose, he said, and the court made the right decision in his case.

"Too many people got too many guns," he said. "We've gone a bit too far. It's gotten stupid with this assault weapon stuff. Everybody has a right to have a gun to go hunting, but this other stuff is ridiculous. We just don't need it."

Huddle said he stopped worrying about his right to carry a concealed weapon after he spoke with Circuit Judge Kenneth Trabue. "The judge told me that people who make threats because of court testimony are reacting emotionally. He said it's strictly an emotional thing," Huddle said. "I was denied, but I have no harps about it."

Huddle spoke with the Roanoke Times & World-News about his opinions a month ago. He died two weeks ago after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

by CNB