Well, that didn't take long. Just a day after we reported that Lafayette, Lousiana officials were trying to opt-out of the state's new Constitutional Carry law by declaring a downtown museum an "educational facility" subject to the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act's prohibition on unlicensed carry within 1,000 feet of schools, the city's efforts are now officially on hold. 

State Sen. Blake Miguez, who was one of the primary authors of the Constitutional Carry law that took effect on July 4th, says the Lafayette Police Department has issued a memo to officers informing them that the "gun-free zone" (which wasn't really gun-free to begin with) shouldn't be enforced "for the time being"; a development confirmed by Louisiana's Attorney General. 

Attorney General Liz Murrill released the following statement on the issue:

“The law on Gun-Free Schools Zones is narrow. The Lafayette Science Museum downtown does not fall under it. I want to thank Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet for directing the Lafayette Police Department to refrain from taking actions against law-abiding individuals on the basis of violating this improperly posted gun-free school zone.”

The Gun-Free School Zones Act specifically exempts those with a valid concealed carry license from its prohibition on bringing firearms within 1,000 feet of a school, so Lafayette's move wasn't going to turn most of the downtown area into a true "gun-free" zone even if Boulet hadn't directed the city's police force to stand down on enforcing the policy. 

The city may still try to move forward with its plan in the future, perhaps by working with the University of Louisiana-Lafayette to start holding classes at the Lafayette Science Museum. That's how New Orleans is working to impose a ban on permitless carry in most of the French Quarter. 

Originally the NOPD claimed that its substation in the popular tourist district was an "educational facility" because officers were learning about the new rules for concealed carry on the premises, but after Murrill spoke to city officials and informed them that alone doesn't make the building a school, the police department announced that its partnering with a local vo-tech that will use the space for some unnamed educational opportunities going forward. 

I wouldn't be surprised if anti-2A officials in Lafayette try to do the same thing with the science museum, especially since the city's police chief had previously urged them to create new "gun-free zones" before the Constitutional Carry law took effect last month. 

Lafayette Chief of Police Judith Estorge wants to create two additional gun free zones. 

The request was made at the city council meeting after a council member wanted to know her plans for when the new conceal-carry gun law goes into effect July 4.

“We will request all bar owners post signs notifying patrons that guns are not allowed in their establishment,” Estorge said. 

Councilman Kenneth Boudreaux initiated the subject, and wanted some sort of reassurance that police have a plan in place.

“We will request all bar owners post signs notifying patrons that guns are not allowed in their establishment,” Estorge said. 

... The chief requested the council to consider portions of downtown and Simcoe as restricted entertainment districts, in other words gun free zones. 

“A gun free zone for the specific hours of 10 p.m. to 3 a.m., Thursday through Saturday downtown and Friday to Sunday on Simcoe,” Estorge said.

If property owners want to post "no carry" signs on their premises, that's up to them, but the local police shouldn't be "requesting" that of any business owner. And the city has no authority to create "gun-free zones" on the weekend hours, which Estorge should have known when she asked the city council to take that step earlier this year. 

For the time being, it looks like the city will comply with Constitutional Carry, but we'll be keeping a close watch on any future attempts to subvert the statute; both in Lafayette and elsewhere in the state.