firearms rack in wisconsin???

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i had asked this among other questions in one of my recent posts, but i believe it may be worth asking separately as to focus on this issue.

if i'm completely wrong, please at least help me understand it correctly instead of just beating me down.

not only am i trying to PROPERLY educate myself by studying and reading all these gun laws, but I also find myself finding things that (in my opinion) seem to sound contradicting.



according to this part

2) POSSESSION OF FIREARM IN SCHOOL ZONE. (a) Any individual
who knowingly possesses a firearm at a place that the individual
knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone is
guilty of a Class I felony.
(b) Paragraph (a) does not apply to the possession of a firearm:
1. On private property not part of school grounds;
2. If the individual possessing the firearm is licensed to do so
by a political subdivision of the state or bureau of alcohol, tobacco
and firearms in which political subdivision the school zone is
located, and the law of the political subdivision requires that,
before an individual may obtain such a license, the law enforcement
authorities of the political subdivision must verify that the
individual is qualified under law to receive the license;
3. That is not loaded and is:
a. Encased; or
b. In a locked firearms rack that is on a motor vehicle;

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it sounds like i LEGALLY CAN have a firearm on school property if it is NOT LOADED, AND IS:........in a LOCKED FIREARMS rack that is on a motor vehicle.

is that correct???



which brings up another question??? i thought the only way to carry in a VEHICLE was unloaded, locked in a case designed for a gun and out of reach.

well a "LOCKED FIREARMS RACK ON A MOTOR VEHICLE" doesn't sound like "in a case and out of reach". so how do i understand that??? or is there possibly a contradiction of sort worth looking into???





to clarify one more thing. my main intent is not to carry in such manner on school ground, but more the point of

"HOW did it get onto the school grounds in that condition to begin with???" it seems to contradict the law stating that a gun must be unloaded, locked in a case designed for a gun and out of reach.


thanks for helping me understand this.

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I'd say it isn't worth the hassle. I'd rather leave it in the trunk. While a neat idea, it sounds to me like too much work to be worth it at this time.

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The whole firearms rack came into play concerning the single cab pick-up truck. It was believed that placing the encased firearm behind the seat constituted concealing the firearm. It was then that the racks were brought into play as they were displayed in the rear window of the truck cab. Therefore the encased firearm was displayed openly in the locked rack to avoid the concealed issue.

I believe this is what you are wondering about.

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scorpio_vette wrote:

it sounds like i LEGALLY CAN have a firearm on school property if it is NOT LOADED, AND IS:........in a LOCKED FIREARMS rack that is on a motor vehicle.

is that correct???



which brings up another question??? i thought the only way to carry in a VEHICLE was unloaded, locked in a case designed for a gun and out of reach.

well a "LOCKED FIREARMS RACK ON A MOTOR VEHICLE" doesn't sound like "in a case and out of reach". so how do i understand that??? or is there possibly a contradiction of sort worth looking into???

to clarify one more thing. my main intent is not to carry in such manner on school ground, but more the point of

"HOW did it get onto the school grounds in that condition to begin with???" it seems to contradict the law stating that a gun must be unloaded, locked in a case designed for a gun and out of reach.

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There is no contradiction.

Since 948.605 does not force you to place a firearm in a rack attached to a vehicle without it being encased, 948.605 is not a defense to violating 167.31.

In order to comply with941.23,a firearm must be out of reach only if it is hidden and you are aware of its presence. A firearm encased ina transparent case which isdiscernible by ordinary observationfrom outside of the vehicle and in the immediate presence maylegally be within your reach. (a gun rack in the rear window for an example)

Encased in an opaque case which is easily recognizable as a gun case and discernible by ordinary observationfrom outside of the vehicle and in the immediate presence may be legal to have within your reach. There is no court ruling (case law) regarding this scenerio.

While some may argue that any opaque gun case technically hides the firearm when it is placed inside, the fact that 984.605 requires the firearm to be encased in order to travel through a school zone on foot or a bicycle may be a defense to a CCW citation within a school zone if on foot or bicycle so long as the encased firearm is not hidden further by placing it into another container.

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The following is an excerpt of the federal Gun-Free School Zone Act.

LAW: ON GUN FREE SCHOOL ZONE




18 USC 922(q)(1) Federal Gun-Free School Zones

(2)(A) It shall be unlawful for any individual knowingly to possess a firearm that has moved in or that otherwise affects interstate or foreign commerce at a place that the individual knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not apply to the possession of a firearm--

(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), it shall be unlawful for any person, knowingly or with reckless disregard for the safety of another, to discharge or attempt to discharge a firearm that has moved in or that otherwise affects interstate or foreign commerce at a place that the person knows is a school zone.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not apply to the discharge of a firearm--

(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as preempting or preventing a State or local government from enacting a statute establishing gun free school zones as provided in this subsection.

As you can see the Wisconsin Gun-Free School Zone law 948.605 is for the most part a carbon copy of the federal law. Unfortunately the Legislative Reference Bureau did a poor job of modifying it to fit with Wisconsin's firearm regulations. Equally unfortunate is that the federal law was "shot down" as being unconstitutional (U.S. v. Lopez) 514 U.S. 549(1995) however, the Wisconsin law lives on.

From what I have been able to research the federal law had the "locked firearm rack" provision in order to accomodate those Western states that allow carry of firearms in a pickup truck rack. Wyoming. for example, has no firearm vehicle cary restrictions except for concealed weapons. In Wyoming there is no state statute restriction against carrying a loaded visible firearm in a vehicle. South Dakota is very similar. The "unloaded" and "locked rack" language was in the federal law to restrict thevehicle carry of firearms in school zones ofthose and other Western states. At least that is the conclusion I arrived at after reading the history of the legislation.

As I said the Wisconsin legislature and the Legislative Reference Bureau screwed up when they tried to adapt the federal law to Wisconsin state law. The federal law is dead and we are stuck with the Wisconsin law.

The bottom line is: In Wisconsin the only way you can carry a firearm in a vehicle firearms rack within a school zone is if the firearm is unloaded, encased IAW 167.31 and then locked in the rack.

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The bottom line is: In Wisconsin the only way you can carry a firearm in a vehicle firearms rack within a school zone is if the firearm is unloaded, encased IAW 167.31 and then locked in the rack.

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Transporting a long gun in this way using a clear rifle case and a lockable rack could be an excellent way to build firearms awareness among the general population. I do not think it would be too difficult to make a clear soft rifle or shotgun case using thick plastic sheeting and a vacuum bag sealer. I would fuse the plastic sheeting over into a long tube shape, like a soft cloth rifle case, and then loop a seam at the end as a tube to put a string through. I would start with a bolt action, then transition to a curvier case shape for an SKS, and eventually end up with the distinctive silhouette of a clear cased AK or AR-15 in my rear window.

This would sort of be like open carry for the truck! Now I just need to get a pickup truck...

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McX wrote:

i used to get a kick out of those pickup truck back window screen things that depicted a rack, with all the latest assault style guns on it. I bet that drove law enforcement nuts!

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yup, them are funny