Well here's the letter I sent to the rec director:
Ms. Ebel,
I was the fellow who had tried to call you earlier. *I first wanted to first thank you for a wonderful parade! *I can't imagine how much work it took and how many details to iron out there were. *I did want to call attention to a particular detail and that is the idea of a ban on firearms in the parade.
I'm not sure if you're aware of the incident that took place on the 3rd. *I was planning to walk for a particular political candidate while openly carrying a loaded weapon. *I was confronted by the Lexington Police Department who told me that I was doing nothing illegal, however they were confronting me on you and your department's behalf. *They mentioned that, while it wasn't against the law to carry in the parade--it was against the parade rules. *A gentleman in your department (I forget his name) then came over and reiterated what the police had said.
I then explained that I was legally open carrying a weapon on public property and was well within my rights to do so. *The man explained, quite*erroneously--that weapons were prohibited from city buildings and to simply think of the parade as an extension of a city building. *According to Lexington's own*ordinances, he would be incorrect. *Lexington only bans CONCEALED weapons from city BUILDINGS--neither of which apply in this situation.
Sec. 14-19.4.* Concealed deadly weapons.
(a)***No person shall carry a concealed deadly weapon in any building or portion of any building owned, leased, occupied or controlled by the urban county government.
(b)***The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to the following:
(1)***Any urban county government building used for public housing by private persons;
(2)***Urban county government highway rest areas;
(3)***Private dwellings owned, leased or controlled by the urban county government; and
(4)***Sworn officers in the division of police and other law enforcement officers authorized to carry concealed deadly weapons pursuant to KRS 527.020.
I would also like to emphasize that open carry is not simply a legal “loophole”. In fact, the Kentucky Constitution protects the right to open carry.
Section One of the Kentucky Bill of Rights states:
“Seventh: The right to bear arms in defense of themselves and of the State, subject to the power of the General Assembly to enact laws to prevent persons from carrying CONCEALED weapons.”
In the precedent set forth from the Kentucky Court of Appeals, Holland V. Commonwealth, it is established that the state legislature can only deny weapons carried in concealed fashion, NOT weapons carried in the open.
In my conversation with the fellow from your department, he mentioned that the parade committee wanted a family friendly message and then compared what I was doing to the crossdressers that were allegedly urinating in the streets. I fail to see how a school teacher legally & respectfully carrying a firearm in the streets--exercising his 2nd amendment rights which have been defended by firearms--compares to crossdressers urinating in public. For a patriotic event, this sure seems blatantly & ironically unpatriotic.
Not only does your department not have the authority to ban openly carried firearms, but neither does the city council, and neither does our legislature in Frankfort. It would take a constitutional amendment to regulate open carry. I do hope this was an unintentional oversight. I also hope that this will never happen again with future city events. Again, please note that I am very appreciative of the parade and all the work it took to make it a success. I'm simply concerned 1)for my civil liberties, 2)for any potential legal liabilities that Lexington might incur due to unconstitutional practices. I look forward to your response.
I'll keep you posted on the response.