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Full open carry preemption on ALL NC gamelands up for public comment

chiefjason

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
1,025
Location
Hickory, NC, ,
All right guys. Here we go again. I know there was some grumbling about certain gamelands being exempt from firearms carry. This will fix that for OC at least.

H9. Allow open carry of firearms anytime on state-owned game lands and wildlife conservation areas.
Justification: Legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2011 made it “... lawful for a person to carry any firearm openly, or to carry a concealed handgun with a concealed handgun permit, at any State-owned rest area, at any State-owned rest stop along the highways, and at any State-owned hunt- ing and fishing reservation.” This directive will allow hunters to carry all firearms openly at any time on game lands. This proposal changes the Com- mission’s rules so they are in line with state law.


You can review the booklet and submit comments here. I suggest we all take the time to tell the commissioners we want this. I can tell you that they do listen if they hear from enough of us. And it looks like they want to do this. We just need to make sure we let them know we want it too.

https://ncpaws.org/PAWS/WRC/PublicComments/PublicEntry/PublicComments.aspx
 

dmatting

Regular Member
Joined
May 25, 2011
Messages
445
Location
Durham, NC
There are still quite a lot of gamelands that are on private property, no? If I read this correctly, this change would still keep those particular gamelands off limits for open carry - unless allowed by the landowner.

I guess I'm not sure what is really being changed here. This is the current regulation about carrying on gamelands...

POSSESSION OF FIREARMS ON GAME LANDS

On State-owned game lands, and all other lands unless prohibited by the landowner, persons may lawfully carry any firearm openly that they are otherwise lawfully entitled to possess, and may also carry a concealed handgun if they possess a current and valid concealed handgun permit issued to them. However, persons may not hunt with any firearm being carried unless such firearm is authorized as a lawful method of take for that open season. The exempted game lands where concealed carry is prohibited are:
  • Buckhorn
  • Harris
  • Sutton Lake
  • Mayo
  • Hyco
  • Lee
  • Chatham
  • Pee Dee, area north of U.S. 74
  • Butner-Falls
  • Jordan
  • Vance
  • Kerr Scott
  • Dupont
  • Bladen Lakes
  • Wayne Bailey-Caswell, area north of U.S. 158 and east of N.C. 119

So, are some of the above listed gamelands state owned?
 

chiefjason

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
1,025
Location
Hickory, NC, ,
Good question and something I have not looked into. Heck, this may not be much of a change then. I know some on the list are Corps of Engineers land from a discussion on another board. There are members that are more familiar with those. Since that is Fed land this would not do much. And it does specify state owned so I may have jumped the gun on "All". That stinks. However, clarifying OC as legal on state land would not be a bad thing either. Just when you think it's getting simpler it just gets more confusing, figures.
 
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