Gray Peterson
Founder's Club Member - Moderator
imported post
Ms. Ray,
My name is Lonnie Wilson, and I was forwarded this email from DenWin (name redacted). My apologies for contacting you out of the blue, but the statement needed an immediate correction.
In January of 2007, I met with Deputy City Attorney Bill Kirby in person. We had discussed the law specifically as applicable to public buildings, and we had came to the conclusion that those who are licensed under ORS 166.291 are exempt from the law. As a courtesy, I am CC'ing him the email as well as to Captain Tim Roberts, who was my contact at the Beaverton PD on this issue.
Here is the law on this subject:
Definition of public building and court facility:
(4) “Public building” means a hospital, a capitol building, a public or private school, as defined in ORS 339.315, a college or university, a city hall or the residence of any state official elected by the state at large, and the grounds adjacent to each such building. The term also includes that portion of any other building occupied by an agency of the state or a municipal corporation, as defined in ORS 297.405, other than a court facility.
(2) “Court facility” means a courthouse or that portion of any other building occupied by a circuit court, the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court or the Oregon Tax Court or occupied by personnel related to the operations of those courts, or in which activities related to the operations of those courts take place.
166.370 Possession of firearm or dangerous weapon in public building or court facility; exceptions; discharging firearm at school. (1) Any person who intentionally possesses a loaded or unloaded firearm or any other instrument used as a dangerous weapon, while in or on a public building, shall upon conviction be guilty of a Class C felony.
Subsection 3, contains exemptions for certain persons. Let's go into the exemptions:
(3) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to:
(a) A sheriff, police officer, other duly appointed peace officers or a corrections officer while acting within the scope of employment.
(b) A person summoned by a peace officer to assist in making an arrest or preserving the peace, while the summoned person is engaged in assisting the officer.
(c) An active or reserve member of the military forces of this state or the United States, when engaged in the performance of duty.
(d) A person who is licensed under ORS 166.291 and 166.292 to carry a concealed handgun.
(e) A person who is authorized by the officer or agency that controls the public building to possess a firearm or dangerous weapon in that public building.
Subsection 2, which deals with carrying a loaded or unloaded firearms in court facilities, are NOT exempt via concealed handgun license. Public buildings, however, are exempted by CHL. I also point out that under Oregon law, "courts" insofar as the state weapons prohibition does NOT include the city courthouse or courtroom. A city judge MIGHT (again, I emphasize might because I don't have good understanding of a city judge's power) have the ability to prohibit weapons in his courtroom under the provisions of contempt, but such prohibitions MUST be limited to his courtroom and cannot be used as a wedge to ban the possession of all firearms throughout the public building where his courtroom is housed.
Federal buildings (such as social security offices) and federal courts are addressed in
Title 18, United States Code, Section 930. Nearly all persons who carry guns lawfully (those with CHL's since they are required to carry loaded in the City of Beaverton)
are very aware of these federal restrictions. Those laws are enforced by the United States Marshals and the Federal Protective Service (FPS) as well as the armed security officers that patrol those buildings.
Bill Kirby and Captain Roberts distributed both a public building training bulletin and loaded carry in public places training bulletin last year. I would suggest emailing Mr. Kirby or Captain Roberts for a copy, so that way misinformation like this doesn't spread around again.
Regards,
Lonnie Wilson
Ms. Ray,
My name is Lonnie Wilson, and I was forwarded this email from DenWin (name redacted). My apologies for contacting you out of the blue, but the statement needed an immediate correction.
In January of 2007, I met with Deputy City Attorney Bill Kirby in person. We had discussed the law specifically as applicable to public buildings, and we had came to the conclusion that those who are licensed under ORS 166.291 are exempt from the law. As a courtesy, I am CC'ing him the email as well as to Captain Tim Roberts, who was my contact at the Beaverton PD on this issue.
Here is the law on this subject:
Definition of public building and court facility:
(4) “Public building” means a hospital, a capitol building, a public or private school, as defined in ORS 339.315, a college or university, a city hall or the residence of any state official elected by the state at large, and the grounds adjacent to each such building. The term also includes that portion of any other building occupied by an agency of the state or a municipal corporation, as defined in ORS 297.405, other than a court facility.
(2) “Court facility” means a courthouse or that portion of any other building occupied by a circuit court, the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court or the Oregon Tax Court or occupied by personnel related to the operations of those courts, or in which activities related to the operations of those courts take place.
166.370 Possession of firearm or dangerous weapon in public building or court facility; exceptions; discharging firearm at school. (1) Any person who intentionally possesses a loaded or unloaded firearm or any other instrument used as a dangerous weapon, while in or on a public building, shall upon conviction be guilty of a Class C felony.
Subsection 3, contains exemptions for certain persons. Let's go into the exemptions:
(3) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to:
(a) A sheriff, police officer, other duly appointed peace officers or a corrections officer while acting within the scope of employment.
(b) A person summoned by a peace officer to assist in making an arrest or preserving the peace, while the summoned person is engaged in assisting the officer.
(c) An active or reserve member of the military forces of this state or the United States, when engaged in the performance of duty.
(d) A person who is licensed under ORS 166.291 and 166.292 to carry a concealed handgun.
(e) A person who is authorized by the officer or agency that controls the public building to possess a firearm or dangerous weapon in that public building.
Subsection 2, which deals with carrying a loaded or unloaded firearms in court facilities, are NOT exempt via concealed handgun license. Public buildings, however, are exempted by CHL. I also point out that under Oregon law, "courts" insofar as the state weapons prohibition does NOT include the city courthouse or courtroom. A city judge MIGHT (again, I emphasize might because I don't have good understanding of a city judge's power) have the ability to prohibit weapons in his courtroom under the provisions of contempt, but such prohibitions MUST be limited to his courtroom and cannot be used as a wedge to ban the possession of all firearms throughout the public building where his courtroom is housed.
Federal buildings (such as social security offices) and federal courts are addressed in
Title 18, United States Code, Section 930. Nearly all persons who carry guns lawfully (those with CHL's since they are required to carry loaded in the City of Beaverton)
are very aware of these federal restrictions. Those laws are enforced by the United States Marshals and the Federal Protective Service (FPS) as well as the armed security officers that patrol those buildings.
Bill Kirby and Captain Roberts distributed both a public building training bulletin and loaded carry in public places training bulletin last year. I would suggest emailing Mr. Kirby or Captain Roberts for a copy, so that way misinformation like this doesn't spread around again.
Regards,
Lonnie Wilson
