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First letter - Saukville ban on assembled firearms

Geoff

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I just wrote my first letter reguarding local ordinances and thought I would post it for your reference. If I hear back, I will post that as well.

Have a good one
Geoff



<Addressee>,

I recently came across village ordinance 140-2 which prohibits residents (and non-village LEOs) from possessing an assembled firearm within village limits. This ordinance has been made void and unenforceable by State Statute 66.0409. To avoid any confusion, I believe this ordinance should be removed. I would be greatly appreciative if you would see to it that this issue is addressed at the next village hall meeting.

Thank you,
Geoff



Village ordinance 140-2
No person except an authorized police officer shall[/b] discharge any firearm within the Village or have any firearm in his possession within the Village unless it is unloaded and knocked down and enclosed in a carrying case[/b] or other suitable container, provided that the Board may issue permits to an organized gun club to engage in target practice within the Village at times and places designated by the Chief of Police.

State Statute 66.0409(2)[/b]
Except as provided in subs. (3) and (4), no political subdivision may enact an ordinance or adopt a resolution that regulates the sale, purchase, purchase delay, transfer, ownership, use, keeping, possession, bearing, transportation, licensing, permitting, registration or taxation of any firearm or part of a firearm[/b], including ammunition and reloader components, unless the ordinance or resolution is the same as or similar to, and no more stringent than, a state statute.

(4) (a)[/b] Nothing in this section prohibits a political subdivision from continuing to enforce an ordinance or resolution that is in effect on November 18, 1995, and that regulates the sale, purchase, transfer, ownership, use, keeping, possession, bearing, transportation, licensing, permitting, registration or taxation of any firearm or part of a firearm, including ammunition and reloader components, if the ordinance or resolution is the same as or similar to, and no more stringent than, a state statute.

(b)If a political subdivision has in effect on November 17, 1995, an ordinance or resolution[/b] that regulates the sale, purchase, transfer, ownership, use, keeping, possession, bearing, transportation, licensing, permitting, registration or taxation of any firearm or part of a firearm, including ammunition and reloader components, and the ordinance or resolution is not the same as or similar to a state statute, the ordinance or resolution shall have no legal effect and the political subdivision may not enforce the ordinance or resolution on or after November 18, 1995.[/b]

 

AaronS

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Anubis wrote:
Wow, you are extremely patient, waiting 14 years to challenge that ordinance. :)

Looks like a slam-dunk, though.

What did you wait for?

I had to edit this again to ask... What were you waiting for? Geoff? Well thank God for Geoff. He cut your wait time down to ... Well this year!

And to think he just started with a simple letter...
 

Anubis

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AaronS wrote:
What did you wait for?

I had to edit this again to ask... What were you waiting for? Geoff?
Since you asked twice, this must be important to you. I am not sure what you mean... I commend Geoff for his action; the first sentence of of my comment was a jest based on the fact that the village ordinance has been illegal since 1995 (stated in Geoff's first post) and was not challenged by anyone until 2009. Of course I did not really think Geoff knew of it in 1995 and sat on a response till now. If you took offense at my gibe, I apologize; I didn't intend to give offense.
 

AaronS

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Anubis wrote:
AaronS wrote:
What did you wait for?

I had to edit this again to ask... What were you waiting for? Geoff?
Since you asked twice, this must be important to you. I am not sure what you mean... I commend Geoff for his action; the first sentence of of my comment was a jest based on the fact that the village ordinance has been illegal since 1995 (stated in Geoff's first post) and was not challenged by anyone until 2009. Of course I did not really think Geoff knew of it in 1995 and sat on a response till now. If you took offense at my gibe, I apologize; I didn't intend to give offense.
Oh no, no offence at all... I just thought it was funny for you to say that you were waiting for 14 years to see this old law removed. Geoff got it done on his first try.
 

Geoff

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Well, at least I'll be on par with the rest of the state now. If only I didn't have that school right across the street from me. Once the 'broken down' law is removed, I'll have to ask the chief how I get this permit to which the GFSZ statute referrs.



Geoff
 

Geoff

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Doug,

I agree with you that he can't provide a permit, but I just want to point it out to the Chief. Word around town is that he is a fairly Pro-2A guy, but I'm not sure in what sense. The more LEO's we can get on our side the better.



geoff
 

Geoff

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I finally heard back from the chief, and they have an amendment prepared that will remove the ban on assembled, uncased, loaded firearms, but adds a ban to public parks.

What municipalities have we had success with in having them remove bans from city parks? I would like to reference this in my follow up letter. I will also argue that a ban in village parks is more stringent than the state's ban in state parks.



Thanks much,

Geoff
 

bnhcomputing

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Geoff wrote:
I finally heard back from the chief, and they have an amendment prepared that will remove the ban on assembled, uncased, loaded firearms, but adds a ban to public parks.

What municipalities have we had success with in having them remove bans from city parks? I would like to reference this in my follow up letter. I will also argue that a ban in village parks is more stringent than the state's ban in state parks.



Thanks much,

Geoff
Green bay recently discussed banning in public/city parks and then decided against. Please post when the council/committee meeting is when they will discuss this.
 

AaronS

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bnhcomputing wrote:
Geoff wrote:
I finally heard back from the chief, and they have an amendment prepared that will remove the ban on assembled, uncased, loaded firearms, but adds a ban to public parks.

What municipalities have we had success with in having them remove bans from city parks? I would like to reference this in my follow up letter. I will also argue that a ban in village parks is more stringent than the state's ban in state parks.



Thanks much,

Geoff
Green bay recently discussed banning in public/city parks and then decided against. Please post when the council/committee meeting is when they will discuss this.
A copy of the minutes (from the Green Bay meeting) might be helpful to look at. I would like to know the reason that Green Bay turned down the ban bill. The same reasons might also work for Saukville.
 

Geoff

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AaronS wrote
A copy of the minutes (from the Green Bay meeting) might be helpful to look at. I would like to know the reason that Green Bay turned down the ban bill. The same reasons might also work for Saukville.
Do you recall when Green Bay voted on the ban? That may help me find it more quickly.

Thanks,
Geoff
 

Geoff

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Thanks for the link BNH.

The last article is the only one still available, but at least it helped me determine that the vote was on 9/1.

Green Bay's search functionality isn't the greatest, so I'm still trying...



geoff
 

Geoff

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Discussion/Action On Prohibiting Firearms And Dangerous Weapons In Parks



Atty. Wachewicz addressed the Committee regarding this issue. The request is for the Park Committee to adopt an additional subsection to the municipal code in the Parks Chapter, 25.04 Conduct in Parks and Greenways in the City of Green Bay. The proposed subsection (13) states that no person can possess a firearm in any park unless the firearm is unloaded and enclosed within a carrying case. In addition, the proposed ordinance asks for the same qualification for a dangerous weapon and provides an exemption for peace officers. He believes this is consistent with State Statute, Chapter 29.089, which prohibits the possession of firearms unless they are unloaded and enclosed in a case in State parks.



Ald. Wiezbiskie asked how this relates to the right to bear arms. Atty. Wachewicz said people still have the constitutional right to bear arms, but that right is not absolute. They can openly carry the firearm in public, but regulations are in existence, i.e., people cannot possess a firearm in a public building. A parallel to that would be a City park as well. The County has a similar ordinance (8.07) which prevents the possession of firearms in a park.



Ald. Jeffreys asked Atty. Wachewicz why he didn’t just put a period after parks in the proposed ordinance. She understands the hunting of migratory birds at Ken Euers. Atty. Wachewicz responded that essentially the State Statute contains that additional language. This mirrors the State Statue to make sure we have the same or similar language as the State Statute which is what is required under Chapter 66.0409, which talks about local political subdivisions being able to regulate firearms.

Ald. Kocha asked about the need for this when we already have a State Statute. Atty. Wachewicz said we need to have an ordinance to apply to City parks, where the State Statute applies to State parks.



Ed Foral, 2219 Jamesford Ave., said he had already e-mailed the committee and wanted to address some issues. Other municipalities had similar statutes taken off the books because they were considered more stringent than their State Statutes. This statute would not protect the City parks, because people openly carrying firearms are not a danger to the public. The Brown County ordinance will be challenged in the courts. He was at the gathering at Fritsch Park, and it was held in an orderly fashion. There were no concerns from the Police Department. It is unfortunate the City would take such an action. It was a group of people celebrating the right to bear arms. They want to educate people that carrying firearms in this manner is a legal act.



Ald. Piton asked who brought this forward. Atty. Wachewicz said it was a request from the Law Department to the Park Committee. Ald. Piton felt this statute would be overturned in court. He didn’t think carrying a holstered sidearm is dangerous, and he would not support this.



Ald. Kocha said she respected the right to bear arms. She was concerned about how this would affect the right of people to enjoy the park. We talked about the fear some people may have if dogs were allowed in the park. Parks are there for people to enjoy. Ald. Jeffreys also supported this ordinance.



There was further discussion on whether education was needed to make people comfortable with seeing someone carrying firearms. Ald. Kocha questioned why this statute would be overturned when the County and State statutes have not been. Atty. Wachewicz said the State statute has been in effect since 1989. Ald. Piton said the Federal Supreme Court is shifting on this issue. Atty. Wachewicz said the District of Columbia case a little over a year ago focused on the right to bear arms in their residence. The distinction here is we are talking about a public place as opposed to a private residence. There are a number of statutes that have prohibitions with respect to firearms. That lends credibility to the rationale that this regulation is reasonable. Ald. Wiezbiskie had concerns about how people carrying arms in public places would affect families gathering there. If this ordinance gets overturned, so be it.



Ald. Jeffreys made a motion to approve the proposed ordinance, which was seconded by Ald. Kocha and carried with Ald. Piton voting no.
 

Geoff

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So argument I would like to present will be based on:'

State law bans carry in state parks, not local municipalities.

66.0409 says local ord. may be no more stringent than state.

Stringent = restrictive. Banning firearms on any park not state owned would increase the 'banned' area, therfore being more restrictive.

Green Bay didn't pass their proposed parks amendment because they don't believe a holstered firearm is dangerous.



What else can I add?

Thanks,
Geoff
 
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