jaydubs wrote:I just read through Minnesota Statute 609.66, and I was wondering if I could get a second opinion.
Once you give notice to the sheriff and commissioner of public safety, does that also mean you can carry "within any courthouse complex?" I know that the Hennepin County court building has metal detectors and such, and I don't imagine trying to explain carrying a firearm to the security guards there would go over well.
Is there another statute at work that allows State buildings and courthouses to ban guns on their premises? This article suggests that there is, but I can't find the specific language to which it refers.
http://minnetonka.patch.com/articles/pa ... -city-hall Anyway, I was curious, and some of you folks seem to be pretty knowledgeable about the law.
IANAL....................answers are: NO and NO
The Minnesota Citizens' Personal Protection Act provide individuals "the inherent right ... to self-protection through the lawful use of self-defense".
To effectuate its purpose, the statute severely restricts local government power. Not only does it now require sheriffs to issue permits to all applicants who meet the statutory criteria, it also prohibits local governments from restricting handgun possession on public property -- including courthouses and other judicial complexes.
As a response to the law -- and in apparent disregard of it -- many local government entities are banning guns from government buildings. District court judges have similarly banned firearms in courthouse complexes. Thirty-six counties throughout Minnesota are said to have promulgated bans excluding weapons from court buildings, although the bans vary from county to county.
For example:
- Chief Judge J. Thomas Mott directed that individuals entering the city hall-county courthouse complex in downtown Saint Paul must remove their guns.
- In the 4th Judicial District, Chief Judge Kevin Burke banned all guns from the Hennepin County Government Center.
- In the 1st District, however, Chief Judge Richard Spicer opted not extend his ban to administration buildings in Dakota County.
Again, activist Judges have initiated their judicial orders as a response to the law -- and in apparent disregard of it -- and none have been challenged.......yet!
