Louisiana gun rights are already on the chopping block. Constitutional carry became the law in Louisiana on July 4, 2024. This may have been the most exciting item for the average citizen. Senator Miguez brought SB01 and SB02, leading the charge in this area, and none other than Representative McCormick, who brought HB12. Although McCormick has long championed bills seeking “constitutional carry” in Louisiana, HB12 stalled out in the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee. Neither the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association nor the District Attorney’s Association voiced any opposition or support.

On the other hand, police associations in the state took varying positions. The Fraternal Order of Police opposed the bill, citing various officer concerns. The Professional Association of Law Enforcement Officers openly supported the bill, reasoning that police protection is just an extension of their community and that lawful citizens have a fundamental right to protect themselves.

Blake Miguez’s bills made it to the Governor and were signed into law on March 5, 2024. That bill was restorative. It reversed the course of past legislation that infringed upon individual rights and brought Louisiana in line with the constitutional carry laws of the other bordering states. But those on the left weren’t happy!

Echoes of Subversion

The bill was set to become law on July 4, 2024, but long before then, there was chatter about how government actors could subvert the rights of individual citizens’ Louisiana gun rights. Our office began hearing the chatter as early as May of this year. We received word that the District Attorney’s Office was reviewing relevant statutory and case law about gun-free zones. However, that inquiry was not just some generic review of how the changing law would impact things. It was specifically focused on one area, the Lafayette Science Museum.

The Lafayette Science Museum is located at 433 Jefferson Street in downtown Lafayette. The Lafayette City-Parish Consolidated Government owns the building. In recent years, the museum has also been operated by LCG. That all changed in July of 2022 when LCG entered into an agreement with ULL, allowing them to take over the operations. That is something that had been in discussions for over a year prior.

The Legal Gymnastics

This week, ULL filed with the Lafayette Clerk of Court designating the Lafayette Science Museum and the surrounding areas up to 1,000 as “firearm-free zones.” The Louisiana Attorney General stated that the law’s intent is “to prevent the possession or carrying of firearms within a school’s campus except under limited circumstances.” La. Aty. Gen. Op. No. 07-0277.

Louisiana revised statute 14:95.6 provides:

A “firearm-free zone” is an area inclusive of any school campus and within one thousand feet of any such school campus, and within a school bus, wherein the possession of firearms is prohibited…” The statute goes on to define a “school campus” as being “all facilities and property within the boundary of the school property.

So, what is considered “school property?” Louisiana Revised Statute 14:95.6 does not define “school property. As we previously noted, LCG owns the property, not the university. The term is defined in Louisiana’s Uniform Controlled Substances Law. Louisiana Revised Statute 40:981.3 defines “school property” as being:

…all property used for school purposes, including but not limited to school playgrounds, as well as any building or area owned by the state or by a political subdivision and used or operated as a playground or recreational facility and all parks and recreational areas administered by the office of state parks.

Who Will Define the Words by Which We Define the Words

Neither Louisiana Revised Statute 14:95.6 nor 40:981.3 defines “property.” However, Louisiana Civil Code Article 11 states, “The words of a law must be given their generally prevailing meaning.” So, in this context, property is best categorized as a piece of immovable property or real estate.

The Attorney General has also opined that the term “school campus,” as used to define a “firearm-free zone” contemplated by LARS 14:95.6, means any piece of immovable property routinely used by a school for school purposes. But we are still left without a clear answer. What is “routine”? Is that daily? Weekly? Monthly? What is a “school purpose?” Generally, we think the purpose of a school is to educate the students enrolled in the educational program.

A Means to an End

You can bet the liberal establishments’ hatred for lawful gun ownership and possession is what prompted all of this. It is just a means to an end. A means that will achieve ridiculous results. By their liberal logic, every place where the government “routinely” provides education could be a gun-free zone. It doesn’t matter if the government owns the property. It doesn’t matter what is being taught or how often things are taught.

Is a person enrolled in an online college learning from the privacy of their home on property used regularly for school purposes? Answer that question using the logic applied to the Lafayette Science Museum, and you can achieve the same absurd result.

In this context, a reasonable person can’t understand prohibited conduct. There is a term for that: unconstitutionally vague. But there is language that is much clearer and to the point. It reads: “The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” Or, if you prefer, the language from our State constitution: “The right of each citizen to keep and bear arms is fundamental and shall not be infringed.”