LOCAL PARKS WHERE AN OFFICIAL DECISION HAS BEEN MADE

[Guest jth_3s]

Name of Park: All Parks

City or County: Smithville

Results of vote: Carry Allowed (no vote just discussion)

Entity taking vote: Aldermen and Mayor

July 21, 2009

by:

Dwayne Page

The Smithville Aldermen apparently will not opt out of a new state law giving gun carry permit holders the right to possess a firearm in parks..

The new state law, recently adopted by the Tennessee General Assembly, is meant to let handgun permit holders carry their weapons into every park in the state. But in a compromise to ensure passage of the law, legislators included a provision that gives local governments the power to ban guns in some or all of their parks by passing a new ordinance.

Now, many local governments in Tennessee are moving to do just that before the state law goes into effect September 1st.

Mayor Taft Hendrixson brought the issue up during Monday night's city council meeting at the request of Director of Schools Mark Willoughby who apparently has some concerns, since teachers often take school students on trips to the city's parks. "I got a call today from the Director of Schools. The new law that has gone into effect allows guns in bars, restaurants, and other places. There is a number of cities and towns that are opting out to keep those (guns) out of city parks. I don't think the people that carry gun permits have ever given any problems. The best I can find out, probably not a one in the State of Tennessee has ever given any problems. But I was asked by the Director of Schools. I think his concern is a lot of the teachers, at certain times of the year, take the children over there for picnics or whatever at the parks. He just asked if I would bring this up before the board and get their feeling on whether we want to opt out of the law and do a resolution not approving guns in the parks, all of our city parks. I guess we're talking about the Smith Road, Airport, and Greenbrook Parks, the Joe L. Evins Ballfield. All of our public parks would come under this."

Alderman Shawn Jacobs said he didn't see a need to issue a ban. "My feeling is most of these people, all the people that have gun permits have undergone background checks, their fingerprints are on file, they have all taken a certain minimum number of hours of training and they're certainly more equipped or attuned to carry guns than most of the general public and as we've discussed I don't think there has ever been a problem with anybody that's carried a gun permit because they've passed the backgrounds. I would hate to see us do that personally. I think we're restricting more and more civil liberties all the time and the reason the legislature passed that was to try to lessen the confusion, I think, about where you can or can't carry a gun. I personally would hate to see us do that. That's just my opinion. This is always something we could revisit at a later time if there were problems."

The board took no action.

[Guest jth_3s]

Name of Park: All Parks

City or County: Cookeville

Results of vote: Carry Banned

[dralarms]

Name of Park: All Parks

City or County: Red Bank

Results of vote: Carry allowed

One of the members spoke before the vote and told the others that "we don't need to tell criminals that our parks are free range for them. (more or less).

[titan14]

Name of Park: All Parks

City or County: Church Hill

Results of vote: Carry allowed

Published July 21st, 2009

CHURCH HILL — By a vote of 5-2 Tuesday, the Church Hill Board of Mayor and Aldermen decided against opting out of a state law that will allow people with carry permits to bring handguns into public parks.

A law recently adopted by the Tennessee General Assembly that lifts a previous ban on handguns in public parks takes effect on Sept. 1. But the state law also gives city and county governments the option of passing a resolution maintaining a handgun ban within their own jurisdiction.

On Monday, the Hawkins County Commission will consider a resolution maintaining the handgun ban in parks, as did the Church Hill BMA Tuesday evening.

Prior to passage of the state law, citizens outside of law enforcement, the military and a few other exceptions were not allowed to carry handguns into public parks regardless of whether they had a carry permit.

“The legislature has approved the practice of persons with handgun permits to have them on their person in the city park,” City Attorney Chris Raines said. “This (proposed resolution) prohibits them from carrying them in the park. State law already says if you do not have a handgun carry permit, you’re not supposed to go armed. That’s the crime of going armed.”

Alderman Bill Killen was most vocally opposed to the resolution during Tuesday’s discussion, noting that opting out of the state law would be limiting the rights of local citizens.

“If we pass this, we’re telling the people of Church Hill who have a carry permit they cannot carry their gun in our park, and I’m frankly not in favor of that,” Killen said.

Aldermen Tom Kern and B.D. Cradic voted in favor of maintaining the handgun ban in parks, although Kern admitted that he could see both sides of the issue.

Kern said he is concerned that the ban creates too much control, which he opposes. Kern also said he hopes that people with a gun permit will be sensible about where they take it.

Mayor Dennis Deal said he would be concerned about seeing a person at a Little League game with a pistol on their hip.

“I really believe that someone who would go through the process of getting a handgun permit would have enough decency not to have a gun on their hip (during a Little League game),” Deal said. “Those are law-abiding citizens.”

[cadillacdude1975]

***UPDATE*****

Name: all parks in East Ridge

City: East Ridge

Entity Voting: East Ridge City Council

Results of vote: Carry prohibited

Previously a motion was made to ban carry and it died for lack of a second (see below) but the motion was reconsidered on 08/13 and passed unasimously to prohibit carry.

Chattanooga Times Free Press | East Ridge changes course to ban weapons

http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/tennessee-politics-legislation/25694-east-ridge-vote-tonight-opt-out.html

Previous post below

Guns Will Be Allowed in East Ridge Parks - WRCB Channel 3 Chattanooga News, Weather |

Council Member Larry Sewell brought up the motion to opt out of the State Law.

Sewell did not receive a second motion on the matter. For now people with legal rights to carry a weapon will be allowed to bring their guns in to parks, including Camp Jordan. East Ridge City Manager is looking into whether the issue could be brought back up at a later council meeting, since their was no actual vote.

Edited August 15, 2009 by Fallguy
Change in status

[K191145]

Kingston Springs City Parks opted out by the City Council.

[GKar]

Kingsport city parks will remain open to carry. Kingsport officials announced that they will not be taking up a resolution to opt-out, choosing instead to follow state law - over the objections of the police chief, Gale Osborne.

[redstategunnut]

City of Franklin Board of Mayor and Aldermen, by 6-2 vote, opted out, with Aldermen Burger and McLendon voting nay.

[busted knuckles]

Guns OK in Mt. Juliet parks

Link to The Wilson Post story.

[willis68]

Guns OK in Mt. Juliet parks

Link to The Wilson Post story.

I love Mt. Juliet

I am so happy I moved my family here

[frontier737]

I love Mt. Juliet

I am so happy I moved my family here

May I suggest you email the Mayor (who voted not to opt out) and your Commisssioner? Here is a link which may help Mt. Juliet, TN City Commission

I did.

[Tim Nunan]

Name of Park: All City Parks

City or County: Tazewell

Results of vote: No vote; discussed and decided no actiion required, ergo legal to carry in Tazewell parks

Entity taking vote: Town board of Mayor and Aldermen

Source: Citizen Tribune, Morristown

[Tim Nunan]

Name of Park: All City Parks

City or County: Hawkins County

Results of vote: Voted to allow park carry

Entity taking vote: County Commission

Source: Citizen Tribune, Morristown

[Superman]

Name All City Parks

City Manchester

Results of Vote Carry to be prohibited vote was 6-0

Source Manchester Times

[broylz]

was told by a MCSO Deputy that the City of Clarksville has banned carry in their parks. havent been able to verify at the local PD yet.

[Guest KWW67]

I am pretty sure Lebanon (Wilson Co) voted to allow carry.

[Fallguy]

Name: All City Parks

City: Soddy Daisy

Results of Vote: Carry will be allowed.

http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/tennessee-politics-legislation/25347-soddy-daisy-says-yes-guns-parks.html

[Fallguy]

Name: All city parks

City: Springfield

Results of Vote: Carry prohibited

http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/tennessee-politics-legislation/25346-springfield-bans-guns-city-parks.html

[Guest Hyaloid]

Name: All City Parks (I think)

City: Jonesborough

Results of Vote: Carry not allowed

JohnsonCityPress.com - Local News - Johnson City, TN

[Fallguy]

Name: All City Parks

City: Dayton

Results of Vote: No action taken, so carry will be allowed.

The Herald-News - News Story

[Fallguy]

Name: All City Parks

City: Gallatin

Results of Vote: No action taken, so carry will be allowed.

http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/tennessee-politics-legislation/24205-gallatin-council-discusses-defers-talk-opting-out-guns-parks.html#post338918

[Guest Kang]

Clarksville will start to allow us to carry in the state parks the 1st of September.

[Guest tlondon]

just got an e-mail from Montgomery County commissoner saying that as of Sept. 1st it will be LEGAL for an HCP holder to carry in county parks. Good news for us here in Montgomery co.

[Fallguy]

Name: All City Parks

City: Walden

Results of Vote: Carry prohibited

Chattanooga Times Free Press | Walden votes 2-1 against guns in parks

[Fallguy]

Name: All City Parks

City: Shelbyville

Results of Vote: Carry prohibited

Shelbyville Times-Gazette: Story: BREAKING: City says no to guns, garbage fees