Court upholds gun ban in airport

A federal appeals court on Thursday ruled that licensed firearms owners may not carry guns into parts of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

GeorgiaCarry.org, a gun-rights group, and state Rep. Timothy Bearden (R-Villa Rica) challenged the airport’s ban on guns. They contended a law enacted last year overrode a longstanding policy prohibiting visitors to the airport from carrying firearms in non-secure areas.

The law, which took effect in July, allows owners of licensed firearms to carry guns on public transportation and in parks and restaurants.

In September, Senior U.S. District Judge Marvin Shoob threw out the suit. Shoob said public transit systems are not the same as airports and airline passengers are not allowed to carry firearms onboard.

On Thursday, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with Shoob and called arguments raised by GeorgiaCarry.org and Bearden “meritless.”

Aviation general manager Ben DeCosta, who declared the airport a “gun-free” zone, applauded the ruling.

“We are pleased…that Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport will continue to remain a safe, secure, gun-free environment for its 90 million passengers a year,” he said.

In a statement, Jonathan Lowy of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence called the ruling “right on the law and sound policy.”

Bearden expressed disappointment.

“I know what the legislative intent was,” he said, noting he was the author of the legislation. “We will either continue to handle this through the judiciary process…or we could just go ahead and fix this legislatively and spell it out.”

Bearden said he has already introduced House Bill 615, a comprehensive rewrite of the state’s gun laws that could be considered next year in the General Assembly.