Louisiana: Lafayette Tries an End-Around Constitutional Carry

This week, anti-gun elected officials continue to liberally interpret state law to infringe on your Second Amendment rights, this time in an attempt to curtail the Right-to-Carry in Downtown Lafayette, Louisiana. The University of Louisiana at Lafayette declared that the Science Museum in Downtown Lafayette and contracted private hotels used for student housing are “school property” to create more firearm-free zones across the Lafayette Parish. If these firearm-free zones were enforced, practically all of Downtown Lafayette would be off-limits to the recently enacted constitutional carry law. This attempt will only frustrate the ability to carry in the popular downtown area for law-abiding citizens.

On August 21, Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Monique Boulet announced the Lafayette Police Department will enforce a 1,000-foot firearm-free school zone around the University of Louisiana Lafayette Science Museum. Mayor Boulet has deferred to the university’s declaration that the museum is part of its campus and, thus, a firearm-free zone. The university operates the museum, but the City of Lafayette owns the building.

Unfortunately, this is now the second effort by anti-gun officials to attempt an end-around constitutional carry. As we previously reported, New Orleans officials tried to create a firearm-free school zone in the French Quarter in July.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill wasn’t amused by New Orleans or Lafayette’s attempted end-run of state law. Below is an excerpt from an August 13 statement that Murrill issued regarding the Lafayette situation,

The law on Gun-Free School Zones is narrow. The Lafayette Science Museum downtown does not fall under it.

However, it seems Lafayette Parish Mayor-President Boulet intends to disregard the Attorney General’s statement and thwart the will of the state legislature by enacting firearm restrictions that the legislature has repeatedly rejected. This is important because Louisiana has a strong state firearm preemption statute prohibiting political subdivisions from enacting their own carry restrictions.

Senator Blake Miguez, author of this year’s constitutional carry and enhanced preemption legislation, has publicly pressured and pushed back against this potential civil rights infringement in Lafayette. On August 22, Senator Miguez sent a letter to Attorney General Liz Murrill asking for an official Attorney General opinion on the definition of “school property” in LA RS 14:95.6.

NRA thanks Attorney General Liz Murrill and Senator Blake Miguez for publicly defending Louisianans’ Second Amendment rights and asking Lafayette to rescind this misguided policy. NRA-ILA will continue tracking developments on this unfolding situation in Lafayette and explore taking action if necessary.