GunClasses.Net wrote:With all the focus on semiautos and high capacity magazines in the news, here's a completely hypothetical for you...
What would your reaction be if you saw someone in jeans and a shirt browsing booths with an AR15 Pistol -- or, better yet, how about a collapsable-stocked AR15, AK47, or Remington 870 -- at the fair, slung over his shoulder? I realize that MN law says we cannot carry rifles/shotguns in public, and some people would say "oh that's ridiculous!". But, it is NOT a question of practicality; it is a question of principle. Do we have a Constitutional Right to keep and bear any arms, or just pistols? (our founders could have written it "keep and bear pistols", but did not).
Or, think of it in this context. Can I Constitutionally bear (carry) a Ruger Mini-14 through Mall of America? What about into a college classroom as a student? (Again, HYPOTHETICAL ... Not looking for a reason to do that, by any means!)
Thoughts...?
I was mobile earlier, so let me outline this in more detail.
* An AR15 pistol is a pistol. Clearly covered under your permit to carry - open or concealed in MN. Controlling statute is MN 624.714.
* Carrying a long gun - the AR15, AK47, or Remington 870 - can be carried openly anywhere it is legal to carry a pistol. Controlling statute is MN 624.7181. Keep in mind that the long gun *transport* laws are different than the pistol transport laws - so in a vehicle it's completely different. See MN 97B.045.
* Carrying at the Fair. Believed by most to be legal, including me. The State Fair currently takes another opinion. There are some groups working on this. I suspect it will require litigation in the long-run. We'll see where that goes.
* Carrying a Ruger Mini-14 at MOA. Can you carry it there? Under MN 624.7181 you can carry a long gun. Legally, I think most believe the mall can't ban carry as they are a landlord. The Mall takes a different view. I suspect this will also require litigation in the long-run to resolve. A lot less interest in tackling this one than the State Fair issue.
* A college classroom? Depends on the college in question. Colleges can put student policies in place that restrict carry, but public schools generally can't ban carry by the public as they are government agencies, and thus prohibited from doing so under MN 624.714. U of MN takes a different view on this and will eject you from campus as a non-student member of the public. The MNSCU system has a completely different policy in place that is compliant with MN state statutes. Again, perhaps litigation, perhaps not.
Constitutionally, my viewpoint is that the concept of keep and bear arms is to be taken literally - in that we should be able to own and carry any firearm of our choosing - pistols, shotguns, long guns, automatic weapons, etc. I suspect the courts in the long-term aren't going to side with my worldview on this :/
My challenge to you as a fellow instructor is that you really should know that the statute (MN 624.7181 in this case) authorizes carry of a long gun in public.
B
