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Iowa Firearm Law

aadvark

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In Iowa, you may openly carry any Firearm, including Pistols, provided; you are in a rural area of the State that is not part of any City, per 724.4.

However, once you conceal a Firearm or Weapon or place one in your Vehicle you must have a Permit. Also, in order to carry a Pistol in a City, you need a Permit.

The best website that goes further into this is www.iowacarry.com.

Do not carry any Firearm or Weapon to or while at, in, on, or within a 1000 feet from any School or any Park... these offenses are enhanced Felonies per 724.4A.

However, the good news is that essentially everywhere else in Iowa is legal.
 
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IA_farmboy

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The website to Iowa Carry is http://www.iowacarry.ORG

Yes, open carry is legal in rural Iowa. It is also legal on private property in city limits with the property owner's permission. Even concealed carry is permitted on private property with permission.

The concealed carry restriction in a vehicle only applies if the weapon is accessible to the occupants. If cased and unloaded then there is no requirement for a permit. In my hunter education course the instructor pointed out that a firearm must be unloaded, and cased or disassembled, before being placed in or on a vehicle. He said a shotgun leaned up against a car, or a rifle placed on a truck tail gate, could get one in trouble if found loaded by a LEO.

I don't recommend testing the limits of the school grounds prohibitions but I have heard that the "gun free zone" that surrounds a school does not include private property or public through ways. The road and sidewalk in front of the school is not included in that "gun free zone" since other laws on private property rights and on unrestricted travel overrule that law. There was a case of a TV reporter being found carrying a concealed weapon on the sidewalk in front of a school. That charge of being armed while in a school zone was thrown out because he had not left the road right of way. Rulings like this one has left the 1000 foot "gun free zone" surrounding a school essentially meaningless.

I am not a lawyer and my advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.
 

Mike

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IA_farmboy

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ProtectedBy9mm wrote:
Does a hotel count as a residence? If I rent the hotel room, am i then able to OC/ CC there?
Thanks

From http://www.legis.state.ia.us/IACODE/2003SUPPLEMENT/724/4.html


4. Subsections 1 through 3 do not apply to any of the following:
a. A person who goes armed with a dangerous weapon in the person's own dwelling or place of business, or on land owned or possessed by the person.
I assume that a hotel room would fall under "dwelling". Good question, I just don't have a definitive answer.
 

yo101jimmy

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ProtectedBy9mm wrote:
Does a hotel count as a residence? If I rent the hotel room, am i then able to OC/ CC there?
Thanks
Dude most places are 30 days before you can call it a residence. so if you want to rent a room for 30 days then your answer is yes.
 

yo101jimmy

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OK I may need to put a new post in but I am asking for a friend of mine that just moved to the Daven port area what are the laws can anyone send me a link.
Thanks!
 

Mike

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yo101jimmy wrote:
ProtectedBy9mm wrote:
Does a hotel count as a residence? If I rent the hotel room, am i then able to OC/ CC there?
Thanks
Dude most places are 30 days before you can call it a residence. so if you want to rent a room for 30 days then your answer is yes.
The word dwelling is pretty generic - should not require an length of stay.
 

aadvark

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Read 724.4A..., a thousand feet [from a School]...; however, if the thousand feet rule has been thrown out, then,... I will be happy to oblige!
 

Mike

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aadvark wrote:
Read 724.4A..., a thousand feet [from a School]...; however, if the thousand feet rule has been thrown out, then,... I will be happy to oblige!
Please read it carefully and slowly yourself - this section of law operates merely as a penalty enhancer - it does not create any new substanative offense - the relevant text is "Notwithstanding sections 902.9 and 903.1, a person who commits a public offense involving a firearm or offensive weapon, within a weapons free zone, in violation of this or any other chapter shall be subject to a fine of twice the maximum amount which may otherwise be imposed for the public offense."

Copying this IA statute is my suggestion for the other states with 1,000 ft. zone gun bans around schoos (CA, WI, and LA) - to amend their 1,000 foot bans into mere penalty enhancers.
 

IA_farmboy

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jhntulsa wrote:
Yes let us assume that a hotel room would fall under dwelling....
Assuming that a hotel room is a dwelling then all is good in being armed during your stay. If it is not then it looks like it would be a misdemeanor if caught. I'm having trouble navigating Iowa Code and so I'm not sure if it would be a "serious misdemeanor" or an "aggravated misdemeanor" if found armed in a place where it is prohibited.

Considering that a convicted felon had charges dropped for prohibited person in possession of a firearm when he used a handgun to successfully defend himself I don't think that it would be too difficult to defend yourself against a misdemeanor if you should have to use your firearm in a hotel room to defend yourself from injury or death.

Risking a misdemeanor versus being disarmed during your stay at a hotel is a personal decision. A lawyer should be able to clear this up.

Oh, another thing to consider. The hotel is private property, one could be charged with trespassing if found armed on the property without permission. The "dwelling" part of the law may override the "private property" part of the law, again something probably best for a lawyer to sort out.
 

Flyer22

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IA_farmboy wrote:
Oh, another thing to consider. The hotel is private property, one could be charged with trespassing if found armed on the property without permission. The "dwelling" part of the law may override the "private property" part of the law, again something probably best for a lawyer to sort out.
But if you're staying at the motel, as opposed to visiting someone who's staying there, you have entered into a social contract with the proprietors. You give them money and they give youtenant rights to a portion of the grounds.
 

diggy485

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i live in wapello co, and i just got my ccw. the bad news is, it is absolutely useless. mine says "only valid WHILE hunting, trapping, or target practice. so i asked a deputy what exactly was i able to do with my ccw that a person without could not. needless to say he did not respond. all of the restrictions on my permit all take place on private property, thus i would not even need a permit. i then asked if i were going to go from one hunt sight to another could i put the firearms in the car to travel to the next sight, and he said no, they would have to be unloaded and stored properly within the law.. so i wonder what part of "shall not be infringed" am i missing here? sorry i started to rant, and i was going to respond about a different topic, but i got way off track. i guess i am just frustrated that out federal and state treat us good law abiding citizens like children..
 

amaixner

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Are you actively supporting getting Iowa's laws fixed? There are organizations who are working on it and desperately need volunteers and help. iowacarry.org and iowagunowners.org
 

kk0g

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A hotel room that you rent is your home weather you rent it for one night, one month or a year, you're a tenant and it's your dwelling. The length of your stay is irrelevant, you're in possession of the property for the night you rent it. If that weren't true the cops could search any occupied room they wanted with nothing more than the hotel owners permission, a clear violation of your fifth amendment rights.

As to the 30 days before you're considered a resident, let's say that was true, if you rented an apartment then by default you wouldn't be able to carry in your own apartment until day 31 and the cops could search your apartment for a month, after all you're not a resident. I'm not a lawyer and my advice is worth exactly what you paid but it seems pretty cut and dried to me.
 

Robin47

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I think there is an "Equal protection claues" in the laws in Iowa somewhere.

I don't know where, other the " UCC which is the Codes & Statues that cause all these unconstitutional laws to begin with.

I think "Uniform Commercial Code" UCC 1-103.6 'A statue should be construed in harmony with the common law, unless there is a clear legislative intent to abrogate the Common Law"

This is the "Recourse", to when before you sign any paper of anykind, you have put ("Without Prejudice "UCC 1.207 ) This protects you agains't all Codes and Statues

in that you are "Not" giving up you Common Law rights, meaning that you can only be procecuted in a federal court, and only for high crimes, like hurting some one or their property.

Codes and Statues are mainly to control people, and make money for the state. This is why they are unconstitutional in nature, and agains't " We the People".

To combat these bad laws, IGO needs to gain more people by posting flyers telling the truth of how bad Iowa is now doing with the Infringment of their 2A rights.

Do these officials take an oath of office in Iowa, to the Constitution ?

And if you can't get "Permission" to buy guns or freely get your CCW's, where is the "Right to Bear Arms" ?. Can you OC rifles ? Try that , except aroundSchool zones.

Go to the California forum, and read some on there, it got a lot of learning and Ideas that might help my Iowa friends, I was born in Iowa my home state, but sad to say its really changed.

Good Luck, and carry on !!! Robin47 :D
 

Capn Camo

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diggy485 wrote:
so i wonder what part of "shall not be infringed" am i missing here? .
your COmmunist State doesnt recognize the Second Amendment, Right to Bear Arms was left out of your CONstitution.
 

IA_farmboy

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Capn Camo wrote:
diggy485 wrote: 
so i wonder what part of "shall not be infringed" am i missing here? .
your COmmunist State doesnt recognize the Second Amendment, Right to Bear Arms was left out of your CONstitution.

Oh, it's there but you have to look for it. I have the right to defend my life and protect my property as codified in the state constitution. If that isn't good enough there is still the catch-all that our rights, even those not enumerated, are equally protected. Then there is the McDonald case before SCOTUS that could remove all doubt to our right to self defense.

What possessed you to reanimate a four month old thread?
 

Darkshadow62988

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Iowa
724.4A and 724.4B are tricky.

Doesnt preemption cover parks?

Short answer: No. Preemption prevents political subdivisions from passing laws regarding firearms. Since 724.4A and 724.4B are state laws, they are not covered.


Long answer: Still no, but here is the why:
724.4A Weapons free zones ‐‐ enhanced penalties.
1. As used in this section, "weapons free zone" means the area in or on, or within one thousand
feet of, the real property comprising a public or private elementary or secondary school, or in or
on the real property comprising a public park. A weapons free zone shall not include that portion
of a public park designated as a hunting area under section 461A.42.
2. Notwithstanding sections 902.9 and 903.1, a person who commits a public offense involving
a firearm or offensive weapon, within a weapons free zone, in violation of this or any other
chapter shall be subject to a fine of twice the maximum amount which may otherwise be
imposed for the public offense.


724.4A applies as an enhanced penalty area. This means only that using a weapon illegally is going to make a person subject to twice the penalty.

However, 724.4B, defines school differently that just elementary and secondary schools:

724.4B Carrying weapons on school grounds ‐‐ penalty ‐‐ exceptions.
1. A person who goes armed with, carries, or transports a firearm of any kind, whether
concealed or not, on the grounds of a school commits a class "D" felony. For the purposes of this
section, "school" means a public or nonpublic school as defined in section 280.2.
2. Subsection 1 does not apply to the following:
a. A person listed under section 724.4, subsection 4, paragraphs "b" through "f" or "j".
b. A person who has been specifically authorized by the school to go armed, carry, or transport a
firearm on the school grounds, including for purposes of conducting an instructional program
regarding firearms.

280.2 DEFINITIONS.
The term "public school" means any school directly supported
in whole or in part by taxation. The term "nonpublic school"
means any other school which is accredited pursuant to section
256.11.

So, don't carry on to the property of a school or you will be facing a class D felony charge. Because of this, the question comes up, does this apply to colleges and universities. It's a class D felony charge, so I'm not willing to find out the hard way and I have had no response from any person of true authority(police don't count) on the matter.
 
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