Lafayette, Louisiana's attempt to ban permitless carry in its downtown area is back on again, just a week after the local police had been told to stand down amidst questions over the legality of the effort to circumvent state law. 

Back on August 12th, the University of Louisiana-Lafayette and the Lafayette Police Department announced that anywhere within 1,000 feet of the Lafayette Science Museum, which is owned by the university, would be exempt from the state's permitless carry law under the Gun-Free Schools Zones Act. But after Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill weighed in and stated "the fact that the museum is owned or operated by University of Louisiana at Lafayette is insufficient to trigger the gun-free school zone law", the city quickly "paused" the plan, and the Lafayette P.D. was instructed that the permitless carry law should be recognized in the downtown area. 

Now, however, the mayor says permitless carry isn't legal in Lafayette's downtown.

“We are going to enforce [the 1,000-foot gun-free zone] because it is a school,” says Mayor-President Monique Boulet. That position would seem to shift or clarify an announcement last week that left enforcement of the zone to the university’s police department. 

The Boulet administration has deferred to UL’s declaration that the museum is part of its campus and thus a firearm-free zone. UL operates the museum, but the building is owned by the City of Lafayette. This latest clarification splits duties: The UL Police Department will police the museum itself and the immediate area around it due to a 2022 corporate endeavor agreement with the city. LPD is responsible for the 1,000-foot radius around the building, enforcing that area just like LPD does any other school. 

Under the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act, only those with valid concealed carry licenses can bear arms within 1,000 feet of a school. Frankly, I think that particular provision would have a hard time standing up to the Bruen test, especially since more than half the states are now permitless carry. And if the federal law was the only enforcement mechanism that could be used by the university, I'd say their quest to void permitless carry would make a great test case for the courts. 

But we're not just dealing with federal law. Louisiana statutes also prohibit carrying a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school unless (among other exemptions) the gun owner possesses a valid handgun license. Unlike the Federal Gun-Free School Zones Act, which defines a "school" as only those locations where elementary and secondary education takes place, under Louisiana state law colleges and universities are included in the definition of "school", and "campus" is broadly defined to mean "all facilities and property within the boundary of the school property". The University of Lousiana may actually have a legal leg to stand on here, at least under state law. 

Despite some of the headlines I've seen in local media, downtown Lafayette will not become a "gun-free zone", even with the new restrictions being enforced. Those with valid carry permits are still free to exercise their right to carry, just as they were before the permitless carry law took effect on July 4th. But given the sheer number of "permit-required zones" that exist in Lafayette (and the state of Louisiana as a whole), it can be a risky proposition to exercise your right to carry without a government permission slip. Cross the wrong side of the street and you may unknowingly be 999 feet away from a school; something that could put you in a Louisiana prison at hard labor for up to five years. 

It seems to me that this is something the legislature can and should address at the first opportunity. There doesn't need to be a dramatic change made to state law. A simple amendment to §95.2. C(9) is all that it would take. The law currently says that "Any person who has a valid concealed handgun permit issued pursuant to R.S. 40:1379.1 or 1379.3 and who carries a concealed handgun within one thousand feet of any school campus" is exempt from the prohibition. Legislators just need to insert "and those who lawfully possess a handgun under §1379.3 B(2)(A)" in the existing statute and the problem would be cleared up. 

There's an argument that the permitless carry statue, which states "A person who meets the qualifications of R.S. 14:95(M) shall not be required to possess a valid concealed handgun permit issued by the state of Louisiana pursuant to the provisions of this Section in order to carry a concealed handgun in the state of Louisiana", already provides an exemption to the state's "gun-free school zones". I wouldn't be shocked to see a lawsuit to that end filed by gun owners in the near future. 

Court cases are lengthy and expensive propositions, however, and it seems to me there's a much easier and simpler solution at hand for lawmakers. It probably should have been done as part of the original permitless carry bill, but now the need is clear: amend the statute to treat all lawful carry the same. Otherwise, we're going to see more of these "permit required" zones pop up across the state.