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State, city carry dueling gun laws
PERMITS: Legislature says Anchorage can't create stricter rules.
By ANNE AURAND
Anchorage Daily News
Published: September 20, 2005
Last Modified: September 20, 2005 at 03:29 AM
Anyone legally allowed to own a handgun in Anchorage can carry it just about anywhere.
Carrying a concealed handgun used to be against the law without a special permit.
But the city stopped enforcing the permit requirement after the state passed a law in 2003 that said Alaskans no longer needed the permit. Concealed weapons are those hidden from view -- in a purse, under a coat, in the glove box.
However, the city's permit law remained on the books. Assemblyman Dick Traini wants to change what it says so the two laws match.
Since state law trumps the city's anyway, he said, it's just housekeeping.
Traini, who brags about his firearms collection, thinks permits are unnecessary anyway. He said he trusts people to meet the necessary requirements to carry a pistol -- being 21 and a U.S. citizen, being clear of any felony or domestic violence convictions. Those who wouldn't meet the requirements would buy guns if they wanted them anyway, he said, illegally, without a permit.
"The criminal element is never going to get a permit. The criminal element gets their guns because they're criminals. It doesn't matter how many laws you put on the books," Traini said.
Alaska Rep. Eric Croft, D-Anchorage, sponsored the 2003 anti-permit bill, citing at the time frustration with constant fine-tuning of state gun laws. Getting rid of required permits, he said, would also help gun owners in rural areas where handgun safety courses, a requirement for getting a concealed weapons permit, aren't always available.
Croft's law didn't change prohibitions against carrying firearms into state courtrooms or court buildings, other justice-related agencies, school yards, the grounds of private child care facilities, bars, domestic violence shelters or the private homes of people who don't give permission.
To make things more complicated, the Legislature passed another law this session barring the city from imposing tougher restrictions on gun ownership than the state does. That law goes into effect next month.
What does it all mean? Who has to let in people with guns? Depends who's talking.
For instance, city officials, including Traini, Police Chief Walt Monegan and Mayor Mark Begich, say it means a legal gun owner can carry a pistol into City Hall, or the Assembly chambers because the state law doesn't specifically ban municipal buildings.
State Rep. Mike Chenault, R-Kenai, who sponsored the bill restricting the city from passing tougher laws, disagrees.
It's no more strict for the city to prohibit firearms in a city building than it is for the state to ban them in a state building, such as a courthouse. The law leaves room for interpretation, he said.
Anchorage's Deputy Clerk Linda Heim thinks people should not be allowed to bring guns into City Hall. What if someone is mad at the mayor, the tax collector or the clerk, she said.
Traini and the city prosecutor were uncertain how the gun laws apply to private property, like stores or apartment buildings.
Mina Freeman, in the state troopers' concealed handgun permits department, said a private property owner can post an enforceable sign that prohibits firearms. They do it that way at the 5th Avenue mall, she said. It's enforced as a trespass law.
Of course, a gun owner remains free to carry a visibly displayed gun most places -- a grocery store, a city sidewalk.
"You could walk into Home Depot with a rifle strapped to your back. It might raise some eyebrows, but yeah," said Anita Shell, a police spokeswoman. "Imagine the amount of calls we'd get."
Police Chief Walt Monegan said if police are called to check out someone walking around with an unconcealed gun, they'd stop the person to make sure the person wasn't drunk, mentally ill or a felon -- things that make owning a gun illegal. If they meet the criteria, they're allowed to carry on.
After all, Traini said, "It's your right to carry a weapon."
Even if the city were able to pass tougher laws, Monegan said he wouldn't push for a concealed weapons permit requirement for Anchorage.
People can still get a permit even though they're not required. Some, like attorney Wayne Ross, local director for the National Rifle Association, said it's a good idea because other states may recognize the Alaska permit. But he's not an advocate for permit laws. Background checks are performed when people buy guns anyway, he said.
"If you have a constitutional right, why should you have to go to the state to get permission to exercise it?" he said.
Vermont is the only other state that doesn't require special permits to carry concealed weapons, he said.
Getting a permit requires the gun owner to go through some gun education and training, and that's a good thing, said Begich. But like other city officials, he said the people who shouldn't be allowed to carry a gun would probably bypass the permits and carry one illegally anyway.
He would like to see some gun education in the public schools, he said. In Alaska, where so many people hunt or spend time in the outdoors, guns are prevalent.
"Kids should understand the power of them and that there's a way to handle them and not handle them," Begich said.
Daily News reporter Anne Aurand can be reached at aaurand@adn.com or 257-4591.
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The rules
• PER ALASKA STATUTE 11.61.220: Concealed guns may not be carried into a courtroom or office of the Alaska Court System, a school yard, a bar, a domestic violence or sexual assault shelter that receives funding from the state, the premises or parking lot of a child care center, or into another person's residence without their permission. A person carrying a deadly weapon commits a crime if he doesn't immediately inform any peace officer who contacts him for any reason that the weapon is concealed on his person. He must allow a peace officer to secure the weapon, or obey directions from the officer to secure it.
PERMITS: Legislature says Anchorage can't create stricter rules.
By ANNE AURAND
Anchorage Daily News
Published: September 20, 2005
Last Modified: September 20, 2005 at 03:29 AM
Anyone legally allowed to own a handgun in Anchorage can carry it just about anywhere.
Carrying a concealed handgun used to be against the law without a special permit.
But the city stopped enforcing the permit requirement after the state passed a law in 2003 that said Alaskans no longer needed the permit. Concealed weapons are those hidden from view -- in a purse, under a coat, in the glove box.
However, the city's permit law remained on the books. Assemblyman Dick Traini wants to change what it says so the two laws match.
Since state law trumps the city's anyway, he said, it's just housekeeping.
Traini, who brags about his firearms collection, thinks permits are unnecessary anyway. He said he trusts people to meet the necessary requirements to carry a pistol -- being 21 and a U.S. citizen, being clear of any felony or domestic violence convictions. Those who wouldn't meet the requirements would buy guns if they wanted them anyway, he said, illegally, without a permit.
"The criminal element is never going to get a permit. The criminal element gets their guns because they're criminals. It doesn't matter how many laws you put on the books," Traini said.
Alaska Rep. Eric Croft, D-Anchorage, sponsored the 2003 anti-permit bill, citing at the time frustration with constant fine-tuning of state gun laws. Getting rid of required permits, he said, would also help gun owners in rural areas where handgun safety courses, a requirement for getting a concealed weapons permit, aren't always available.
Croft's law didn't change prohibitions against carrying firearms into state courtrooms or court buildings, other justice-related agencies, school yards, the grounds of private child care facilities, bars, domestic violence shelters or the private homes of people who don't give permission.
To make things more complicated, the Legislature passed another law this session barring the city from imposing tougher restrictions on gun ownership than the state does. That law goes into effect next month.
What does it all mean? Who has to let in people with guns? Depends who's talking.
For instance, city officials, including Traini, Police Chief Walt Monegan and Mayor Mark Begich, say it means a legal gun owner can carry a pistol into City Hall, or the Assembly chambers because the state law doesn't specifically ban municipal buildings.
State Rep. Mike Chenault, R-Kenai, who sponsored the bill restricting the city from passing tougher laws, disagrees.
It's no more strict for the city to prohibit firearms in a city building than it is for the state to ban them in a state building, such as a courthouse. The law leaves room for interpretation, he said.
Anchorage's Deputy Clerk Linda Heim thinks people should not be allowed to bring guns into City Hall. What if someone is mad at the mayor, the tax collector or the clerk, she said.
Traini and the city prosecutor were uncertain how the gun laws apply to private property, like stores or apartment buildings.
Mina Freeman, in the state troopers' concealed handgun permits department, said a private property owner can post an enforceable sign that prohibits firearms. They do it that way at the 5th Avenue mall, she said. It's enforced as a trespass law.
Of course, a gun owner remains free to carry a visibly displayed gun most places -- a grocery store, a city sidewalk.
"You could walk into Home Depot with a rifle strapped to your back. It might raise some eyebrows, but yeah," said Anita Shell, a police spokeswoman. "Imagine the amount of calls we'd get."
Police Chief Walt Monegan said if police are called to check out someone walking around with an unconcealed gun, they'd stop the person to make sure the person wasn't drunk, mentally ill or a felon -- things that make owning a gun illegal. If they meet the criteria, they're allowed to carry on.
After all, Traini said, "It's your right to carry a weapon."
Even if the city were able to pass tougher laws, Monegan said he wouldn't push for a concealed weapons permit requirement for Anchorage.
People can still get a permit even though they're not required. Some, like attorney Wayne Ross, local director for the National Rifle Association, said it's a good idea because other states may recognize the Alaska permit. But he's not an advocate for permit laws. Background checks are performed when people buy guns anyway, he said.
"If you have a constitutional right, why should you have to go to the state to get permission to exercise it?" he said.
Vermont is the only other state that doesn't require special permits to carry concealed weapons, he said.
Getting a permit requires the gun owner to go through some gun education and training, and that's a good thing, said Begich. But like other city officials, he said the people who shouldn't be allowed to carry a gun would probably bypass the permits and carry one illegally anyway.
He would like to see some gun education in the public schools, he said. In Alaska, where so many people hunt or spend time in the outdoors, guns are prevalent.
"Kids should understand the power of them and that there's a way to handle them and not handle them," Begich said.
Daily News reporter Anne Aurand can be reached at aaurand@adn.com or 257-4591.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The rules
• PER ALASKA STATUTE 11.61.220: Concealed guns may not be carried into a courtroom or office of the Alaska Court System, a school yard, a bar, a domestic violence or sexual assault shelter that receives funding from the state, the premises or parking lot of a child care center, or into another person's residence without their permission. A person carrying a deadly weapon commits a crime if he doesn't immediately inform any peace officer who contacts him for any reason that the weapon is concealed on his person. He must allow a peace officer to secure the weapon, or obey directions from the officer to secure it.
Hello, 911 there is a large stumpy guy (can you say 5'7 280 with 21 inch inseam 
) with a machine gun browsing the lingerie section......