Judge rules: No guns in airport

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UPDATED: 6:23 p.m. August 11, 2008

ATLANTA

Judge rules: No guns in airport
GeorgiaCarry.org, Rep. Bearden had contended new law nullified ban.

By BILL RANKIN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/11/08

People with firearms licenses still can't take guns into non-secure areas of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, a federal judge ruled Monday.

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• Atlanta and Fulton County news

U.S. District Court Judge Marvin Shoob refused to grant a preliminary injunction that would have stopped the city from enforcing the airport gun ban. Shoob ruled against gun-rights group GeorgiaCarry.org and state Rep. Timothy Bearden (R-Villa Rica).

Bearden sponsored House Bill 89, which became law on July 1 and permits people with firearms licenses to carry guns in state parks, restaurants that serve alcohol and on mass transit.

But Shoob said allowing concealed weapons into non-secure areas of the world's busiest airport will make the airport less safe and require it to substantially revise its security procedures.

City officials say that 80 percent of the airport is "non-secure" — areas were people have not been screened at a security checkpoint."There can be no doubt that the public has an interest in safe air travel," Shoob said. "Here, the evidence demonstrates, at the very least, that there is a significant question as to whether permitting the carrying of guns in the airport is a serious threat to the public safety and welfare."

Shoob issued his ruling from the bench at the close of a two-hour hearing. He also said the plaintiffs failed to prove H.B. 89, which allows guns on "public transportation," applies to airports.

The case brought by GeorgiaCarry.org and Bearden moves forward. Shoob's ruling only addressed their request to allow those with permits to carry guns into the airport while the lawsuit makes its way through court.

Bearden, who expressed disappointment with the ruling, filed suit after airport general manager Ben DeCosta threatened the lawmaker with arrest if he brought a gun to the airport.

At Monday's hearing, Robert Kennedy, the airport's assistant general manager in charge of operations, maintenance and security, said the public is highly concerned about airport safety.

"We can't get away from a post 9/11 environment," Kennedy testified.

Kennedy said if a gun were to be accidentally discharged in a non-secure area it would cause mass panic. "It creates, in my mind, a stampede," Kennedy said.

At the hearing, Shoob peppered lawyers and Kennedy with questions and, at one point, injected some levity into the proceeding. If people were allowed to carry handguns into the airport, he suggested, people might not be cutting into lines and there may not be "any hanky-panky" in the rest rooms.

But Shoob also said GeorgiaCarry.org and Bearden had failed to show there is a substantial likelihood they will ultimately succeed in their lawsuit— one of the hurdles they had to clear to get a preliminary injunction.

John Monroe, the lawyer for GeorgiaCarry.org and Bearden, said he will press forward with the lawsuit.

"There's no law that criminalizes s carrying a firearm into the airport," he said. "For the defendants to arrest someone for what's not a crime is a violation of their constitutional rights."

Michael Kenny, a lawyer for the city, noted that Congress gave the Transportation Security Administration the authority to regulate whether handguns can come into airports or not.

"Congress said, after 9/11, airport security is the highest priority," Kenny said. "This is serious, deadly stuff."

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Comments

By Fig

Aug 21, 2008 4:52 PM | Link to this

I am truly astounded at the MORONS commenting in this article.

Your lack of guns will be the death of you.

Scientifically speaking, gun laws do nothing to lower crime. It's been studied over and over and shown again and again. Scientifically speaking, guns are a greater benefit to society than harm. Yes, around 30,000 people died in 2006 due to guns, but 1.5 million crimes were stopped with guns (according to the FBI!). The lives saved with guns outnumber lives lost. Those lives lost need more police resources that might be around if a large chunk wasn't invested in arresting innocent civilians just for owning or carrying a firearm. Arguing otherwise, you are clearly a luddite and a moron.

By Louis

Aug 15, 2008 11:04 PM | Link to this

The greatest fear any household should have is a fear of the gun-owner within, and the greatest fear any country should have is a fear of a bunch of muckheads walking around with guns under their armpits and gun fantasies between their ears.

Who or what is a "law-abiding citizen"?

By Rox

Aug 15, 2008 11:51 AM | Link to this

Arliss,

Statistically, guns will NOT be the death of us. Get your tail out from under your legs and wake up to reality.

By Arliss

Aug 14, 2008 11:53 AM | Link to this

I am truly astounded at the MORONS commenting in this article.

Your guns will be the death of you.

By tarawa1943

Aug 14, 2008 6:32 AM | Link to this

You know this with ruling terrorists are plotting how to penetrate that 'bogus' security perimeter......foolish Judge. If CCW persons traveling around an airport are trained and capable.....

(4 safety laws, Jeff Cooper)
1. All guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target.
4. Always be sure of your target.

...the terrorists will never know who is carrying and that puts the perimeter further out of the airport......another activist Judge...public safety versus freedoms......yeah, right.....

By grandpaw

Aug 13, 2008 2:22 PM | Link to this

Define weapon
?Rope=Noose
?Bootlace=Garrote
?Steak knife=cut ?cut what?
Hopefully if you ever need assistance one of us will be close for you and yours
Primary use of weapon ???
War=Protect your rights in the USA(so you can think like you do)
Licensed concealed carry=Protection

By Sons of Liberty

Aug 13, 2008 10:26 AM | Link to this

br said:

Aug 12, 2008 6:09 PM | Link to this

"TimL: FYI: Unlike most other states with a concealed weapon permit, there is NO hand gun safety course required to get a concealed weapon permit in Georgia. Nothing to show knowledge about handling a gun, safety lessons, or that the person has ever fired a gun before. More than half of handgun deaths are suicides. People living in a home with guns are several times more likely to die of suicide than those without guns."

First of all, firearms are not that complicated. There are five basic rules of gun safety:

1. Treat every firearm as if it were loaded. Before handling or cleaning a firearm, it should be "cleared" (i.e. checked to ensure it is NOT loaded).

2. Always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. (i.e. never point it at anything or anyone you don't want full of holes).

3. Keep your finger off the trigger until the sights are on the target.

4. Know your target and what is behind it. (i.e. be sure of what you are shooting at, or don't shoot!).

5. When not in use the firearm and ammunition should be stored in separate locations, out of reach of any children.

You cannot legislate common sense. It is impossible to require people to be trained on every object or device that might cause injury or death when used improperly.

And lastly, the statement you make about firearms in the home is unfounded. That claim originates from an article in the Oct 1993 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by one Dr. Arthur L. Kellerman. Dr. Kellerman admits that he is against firearms in the home. That particular study has been found to contain numerous flaws. It only deals with gun deaths and does not distinguish between the homes of law-abiding citizens and those of drug dealers and gang members. Nor does it mention anything about the positive influence firearms have in preventing crime.

Dr. Edgar A. Suter, writing in the Journal of the Medical Association of Georgia in March of 1994, states: "The true measure of the protective benefits of guns are the lives saved, the injuries prevented, the medical costs saved, and the property protected�not the burglar or rapist body count. Since only 0.1% to 0.2% of defensive gun usage involves the death of the criminal, any study, such as this, that counts criminal deaths as the only measure of the protective benefits of guns will expectedly underestimate the benefits of firearms by a factor of 500 to 1,000."

By Sons of Liberty

Aug 13, 2008 9:10 AM | Link to this

to apsdecatur.

As "solution" has already pointed out, driving an automobile is a privilege, not a right. As John Adams said:

"Resistance to sudden violence, for the preservation not only of my person, my limbs, and life, but of my property, is an indisputable right of nature which I have never surrendered to the public by the compact of society, and which perhaps, I could not surrender if I would." -- John Adams, Boston Gazette, Sept. 5, 1763,reprinted in 3 The Works of John Adams 438 (Charles F. Adams ed., 1851)

1] rights predate governments.

2] rights, akin to breathing, require neither permission nor acceptance to exist.

3] rights exist, and are often most evident, while being violated.

4] rights and responsibilities coexist.

"Laws which penalize someone for falsely yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater do not limit the freedom of speech. What is penalized is an ABUSE of the freedom of speech (i.e. depraved indifference, 2nd degree murder, inciting to riot). Government has no authority to prevent me from speaking because I might yell "Fire!" in a crowded theater. Government has no authority to prevent me from using my hand because I might make a fist and strike your nose with it. And government has no authority to prevent me from keeping and bearing a gun because I might shoot someone or rob a bank." - State Sen. Tom McClintock (CA)

Responsible citizens understand the nature of firearms and will take the time to learn how to handle and store them safely. Anyone who is afraid of firearms should not have one, it's that simple. While I do agree that anyone who owns a firearm should have proper training on the safe use and handling of firearms, the government should not mandate training as a prerequisite to owning one.

By TSgt B

Aug 13, 2008 1:11 AM | Link to this

Where in the Wild World of Sports did this judge get the idea that he has the authority to sidestep his Oath of Office and overrule a fundamental, Constitutional RIGHT? Impeach the s.o.b., and all others like him. I will carry wherever, and whenever, I choose. The only "license" I need is Article 2 of the Bill of Rights, as incorporated as a whole and inseparable part of the Constitution of the United States of America, December 15, 1791 (ALL RIGHTS RESERVED). I sometimes think these dumb bastards are trying to incite a revolution. It is my not-so-humble opinion that any law-abiding citizen of legal age should be able to carry any small arm they wish AYWHERE THEY MAY FEEL COMPELLED TO DIAL 911. The courts (including the SCOTUS) have ruled too many times to count that the police have NO LEGAL DUTY OR OBLIGATION TO PROTECT ANY CITIZEN FROM CRIMINAL ATTACK, so screw their gun-free zones, I'll be responsible for my own safety, thank you very much! And by the way, Judge Shoob, KMA!

By ncgary

Aug 12, 2008 10:53 PM | Link to this

jury trials can be used to fight bad laws , congress sure wont

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