Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down a ban on handguns, gun opponents are fighting to preserve or expand gun-free zones, igniting battles over whether civilians should be allowed to carry loaded weapons to places such as airports, public parks and even the Magic Kingdom, reports the Chicago Tribune. The same day a new law went into effect in Georgia allowing people who have obtained a legal license to carry loaded weapons into restaurants that sell liquor, state parks and public transit systems, Atlanta officials declared Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport off-limits, citing security concerns. Gun proponents immediately filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the decision.
Reacting to Florida’s new law allowing workers to keep concealed firearms in their vehicles in employee parking lots, Walt Disney World amusement park declared its parking lot exempt. Gun-rights advocates are challenging the U.S. Interior Department to reverse a long-held regulation banning loaded firearms in most national parks. The Supreme Court ruling last month is “not a model of clarity,” said Jon Vernick, co-director of the John Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research. “There will be a bunch of lawsuits about a bunch of different kinds of federal, state and local laws. It is tragedy that resources that could be devoted to trying to prevent 30,000 gun-related deaths in the U.S. every year will instead be devoted to defending lawsuits.”
Link: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-gunlaws_bdjul27,0,5208778.story