Suzanna Hupp

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Suzanna Gratia Hupp
Born	September 27, 1959
Nationality	American
Occupation	Chiropractor
Known for	Concealed carry rights advocate, former member of the Texas House of Representatives

Suzanna Gratia Hupp (born September 27, 1959) is a former Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives, who represented traditionally Democrat District 54 (Bell, Burnet, and Lampasas counties) for ten years from 1997-2007. Hupp is recognized as a leading advocate of an individual's right to carry a concealed weapon. She was elected to her first term in 1996 but did not seek a sixth two-year term in 2006.

Hupp was reared in Friendswood, a city partly in Harris and Galveston counties. She has an older brother, Allan, and a younger sister, Erika. She attended the University of Texas at El Paso and Texas Chiropractic College, from which she received the doctor of chiropractic degree in 1985. Hupp moved first to Houston to practice chiropractic and then to central Texas in 1987. She owned and operated the Cove Physical Rehab Clinic from 1987 until 2000, when she sold the facility. She has also written a book called "From Luby's to the Legislature: One Woman's Fight Against Gun Control", published by Privateer Publications, San Antonio, Texas.

Death of parents

On Wednesday, October 16, 1991, Hupp and her parents were having lunch at the Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas. She had left her gun in her car to comply with Texas state law at the time, which forbade carrying a concealed weapon. When George Hennard drove his truck into the cafeteria and opened fire on the patrons, Hupp instinctively reached into her purse for her weapon, but it was in her vehicle. Her father, Al Gratia, tried to rush Hennard and was shot in the chest. As the gunman reloaded, Hupp escaped through a broken window and believed that her mother, Ursula Gratia, was behind her. Hennard put a gun to her mother's head as she cradled her mortally wounded husband. Hupp's mother and father were killed along with twenty-one other persons. Hennard also wounded some twenty others. As a survivor of the Luby's massacre, Hupp testified across the country in support of concealed-handgun laws. She said that had there been a second chance to prevent the slaughter, she would have violated the Texas law and carried the handgun inside her purse into the restaurant.

Appearances and accolades

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Hupp has been quoted in such publications as U.S. News & World Report, The Wall Street Journal, Texas Monthly, and Time and People magazines. She was featured on CBS's 48 Hours, ABC's World News Tonight and season 3 episode 9 of Penn & Teller: Bullshit!. Hupp can be heard in episode 81 of This American Life, giving a first-hand account of her experience in the Luby's massacre of Killeen, TX in 1991.

Hupp has authored a book regarding her experiences: "From Luby's to the Legislature: One Woman's Fight Against Gun Control", published by Privateer Publications, San Antonio, Texas.

Hupp was awarded the Sybil Ludington Women's Freedom Award by the National Rifle Association. In 1998, Charlton Heston honored Hupp as the first Texan awarded a lifetime NRA membership.

In the state House, Hupp was a member of the House Rural Caucus and the House Veterans and Military Affairs Caucus. In November 2003, Speaker Tom Craddick appointed Hupp as chair of the House select committee on child welfare and foster care. Craddick also named her to chair the Human Services Committee in the 79th Legislature. She also served on the House Law Enforcement Committee.

Hupp has been recognized by many conservative interest groups: the American Family Association, Free Market Foundation, the Texas Association of Business, the Chamber of Commerce, Texas Alliance For Life, Texas Eagle Forum, and the Young Conservatives of Texas. She was rated 100 percent pro-life by the Texas Right to Life Committee.

Hupp is quoted as having said, "How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual... as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of."

Hupp has hosted a radio talk program in the Greater Austin area. She is a co-founder of the Civil Liberties Defense Foundation, a non-profit legal foundation dedicated to providing educational information relating to the preservation of civil liberties guaranteed by the Bill of Rights to the United States Constitution and to providing legal services to protect those rights.

She is married to Greg Hupp, who has served as her campaign manager. They have two sons, Alexander and Ethan. The Hupps have a small Arabian horse ranch near Kempner, Texas in Lampasas County.

References

• Texas State House of Representatives
• Gun Owner's Alliance
• Texas State Elections