Legislature approves handguns in parks
As of April 24, 2015, municipalities no longer have the ability to prohibit handgun carry permit holders from carrying handguns in public parks owned or operated by a municipality except when the properties are being used for an athletic event or other school related activity.
The bill that makes this change, Senate Bill 1171/House Bill 995, was signed into law by Gov. Haslam earlier this month and has been assigned Public Chapter No. 250, Act of 2015.
Prior to Public Chapter 250 becoming law, local governments were authorized to prohibit handgun carry permit holders from possessing handguns while in parks owned or operated by the municipality, after a majority of the governing body approved the prohibition through a resolution. Now, however, local governments no longer have this option. All handgun carry permit holders are permitted to carry handguns in public parks, natural areas, historic parks, nature trails, campgrounds, forests, greenways, waterways, or other public places owned or operated by a municipality or a branch or division of the municipality. The only exception is when the areas are being used by a public or private school conducting an athletic event or other school-related activity on an athletic field, and the individual knows or should have known that a school athletic event or other school related activity is taking place in the immediate vicinity of the property.
For purposes of the legislation, athletic fields include, but are not limited to, football and soccer fields, tennis courts, basketball courts, a track, running trail, Frisbee field or similar multi-use field that is permanent or temporary in nature. The bill seems to indicate that once a handgun carry permit holder is informed or becomes aware that a school is having an athletic event or any other school related activity on the property, reasonable steps should be taken to leave the area where the event is being held and failure to do so is a violation of the law.
Public Chapter No. 250 also amends the provisions that address possessing and carrying weapons on school property. Handgun carry permit holders are now allowed to possess or carry a handgun within public parks, natural areas, historic parks, nature trails, campgrounds, forests, greenways, waterways or other similar public places owned or operated by a public or private educational institution, only if the handgun carry permit holder is also an active or reserve member of the armed forces acting in his/her official capacity with orders to carry a handgun, a civil officer of the U.S. acting in his/her official capacity, an officer or soldier of the national guard called into actual service, a state or local law enforcement officer acting in his/her official capacity, a ROTC student required to carry a handgun while acting in his/her official capacity, a private police officer employed by a higher educational institution or a registered security guard, acting in his/her official capacity.
Handgun carry permit holders are prohibited, however, from carrying or possessing a handgun in the immediate vicinity of any of the areas mentioned above when the areas are being used by a public or private school conducting an athletic event or other school related activity and the individual knows or should have known that a school athletic event or other school related activity is taking place in the immediate vicinity of the property or the property is owned or operated by a public or private school.
Again, the bill seems to indicate that once a handgun carry permit holder is informed or becomes aware that a school is having an athletic event or any other school related activity in the immediate vicinity of the property or that the property is owned or operated by the school, reasonable steps should be taken to leave the area where the event is being held or the property owned or operated by the school and failure to do so is a violation of the law.
Finally, Public Chapter 250 removes the statutory language that allowed municipalities to erect signs that addressed carrying weapons in parks and other public recreational areas. Section 6 of the legislation allows any department of state government to change, remove, or replace previously erected signs impacted by this legislation ahead of schedule, if the General Assembly, through the general appropriations act, provides funds to remove or replace the signs. However, the legislation does not authorize municipalities to replace signs. So, the removal of previously erected signs seems to be the only option municipalities have for purposes of complying with this legislation.
