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Statue question

bmeldrum

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Apr 1, 2009
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Lehi, Utah, USA
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Do any of you know or can provide some information:

Does Utah have or is there a statue/code that says something about just simply having or wearing a firearm is not reasonable cause for a stop, questioning, detaining etc?
 

Kevin Jensen

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Feb 23, 2007
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Santaquin, Utah, USA
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bmeldrum wrote:
Does Utah have or is there a statue
not sure, but I hear there is one just outside of New York. :p

statue20of20liberty.jpg
 

Kevin Jensen

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Santaquin, Utah, USA
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While there is probably no law that you are seeking, there were some interesting notes in Lund vs SLC.

By itself, mere possession of a firearm in public is not unlawful and may well represent the exercise of a fundamental constitutional right guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, § 6 of the Utah Constitution (recognizing the “individual right of the people to keep and bear arms for security and defense of self, family, others, property, or the state, as well as for other lawful purposes,” subject to the power of the Legislature to define the “lawful use of arms.”). See District of Columbia v. Heller, 128 S. Ct. 2783, 2799 (2008) (“There seems to us no doubt, on the basis of both text and history, that the Second Amendment conferred an individual right to keep and bear arms.”); see also Utah Code Ann. §§ 76-10-500 to 530 (2003 & Supp. 2008) (Utah Firearms Act). In Utah, the carrying of a concealed weapon on one’s person in public is a matter of State licensing and regulation, and is routinely permitted pursuant to the applicable State statute. See Utah Code Ann. §§ 53-5-701 to 711 (Supp. 2008). The legislature has explicitly denied local governmental entities such as Salt Lake City the power to limit or restrict possession of a firearm on public property: “Unless specifically authorized by the Legislature by statute, a local authority or state entity may not enact, establish, or enforce any ordinance, regulation, rule, or policy pertaining to firearms that in any way inhibits or restricts the possession or use of firearms on either public or private property.” Utah Code Ann. § 53-5a-102 (Supp. 2008); see University of Utah v. Shurtleff, 2006 UT 51, ¶ 11, 144 P.3d 1109, 1113 (observing that the enactment of § 53-5a-102 in 2004 “dramatically altered the legal landscape, rendering it clear that Utah’s firearms statutes are universally applicable”). The legislature has authorized municipalities only to “regulate and prevent the discharge of firearms, rockets, powder, fireworks or any other dangerous or combustible material.” Utah Code Ann. § 10-8-47 (2007).

As articulated by the Utah Legislature, public policy in this State may fairly be read to condone and even encourage gun ownership and the lawful possession and carrying of firearms in public places. Salt Lake City’s asserted governmental interest in its police officers’ response to a report of a “man with a gun” in a public park cannot be weighed in isolation from this oft-emphasized public policy. In that context, there may well be more individual constitutional rights at stake than the Fourth Amendment freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
 

DEFENSOR

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Jul 26, 2009
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Utah, USA
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Statues in Utah?

There are probably several of the Christus and Moroni among others.:lol:
 

LovesHisXD45

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Jul 3, 2008
Messages
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Location
, Utah, USA
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bmeldrum wrote:
Do any of you know or can provide some information:

Does Utah have or is there a statue/code that says something about just simply having or wearing a firearm is not reasonable cause for a stop, questioning, detaining etc?
77-7-15. Authority of peace officer to stop and question suspect -- Grounds.
A peace officer may stop any person in a public place when he has a reasonable suspicion to believe he has committed or is in the act of committing or is attempting to commit a public offense and may demand his name, address and an explanation of his actions.

76-2-101. Requirements of criminal conduct and criminal responsibility.
(1) (a) A person is not guilty of an offense unless the person's conduct is prohibited by law; and
(b) (i) the person acts intentionally, knowingly, recklessly, with criminal negligence, or with a mental state otherwise specified in the statute defining the offense, as the definition of the offense requires; or
(ii) the person's acts constitute an offense involving strict liability.
(2) These standards of criminal responsibility do not apply to the violations set forth in Title 41, Chapter 6a, Traffic Code, unless specifically provided by law.

76-1-105. Common law crimes abolished.
Common law crimes are abolished and no conduct is a crime unless made so by this code, other applicable statute or ordinance.


Those three in tandem are pretty straight forward. :) It doesn't come right out and say it's not reasonable cause, but since OC is legal, it would provide a really good defense if they tried to stick you with some kind of bogus charge. Once you satisfy the requirements of 77-7-15 to the LEO, and they verify you are no threat and are not in the act of committing a crime, they need to leave you alone and about your business. Anything farther is just harassment, intimidation and opinion forced down your throat.

Kevin
 
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