State appeals federal ruling on workplace gun bansNovember 7, 2007 OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma has appealed an October federal court ruling that blocked enforcement of a 2004 state law that would restrict employers’ right to ban guns in the workplace. In October, U.S. District Judge Terence Kern handed down a permanent injunction, saying the 2004 statute conflicts with federal laws that protect workers on the job, including the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 1970.Kern’s decision was appealed to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by Gov. Brad Henry and Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson, who were sued in their capacities as state officials in October 2004 by Whirlpool. That company has since pulled out of the lawsuit, which is now headed up by ConocoPhillips as chief plaintiff.Other challengers include Tulsa Winch Inc., DP Manufacturing Inc., Norris, Ramsey Winch Inc. and Auto Crane Co.In late October 2004, before the law was scheduled to go into effect, U.S. District Judge Sven Holmes issued a temporary restraining order stalling the statute while the court case continued. Holmes said the Oklahoma statute conflicts with several federal laws. In a November hearing that year, Holmes said the Oklahoma law could affect the enforcement of some 25 federal laws. He extended the temporary restraining order as arguments in the case continued.Additional amendments were approved in 2005, giving employers immunity from liability if a firearm in an employee’s vehicle is used by a third person to injure or kill someone at work. In his decision last month, Kern concluded that the Oklahoma law does not amount to an unconstitutional taking of property rights or deprivation of a fundamental right, but is pre-empted by the federal occupational safety law.The federal law requires employers to abate workplace hazards that could lead to death or serious bodily harm and encourages businesses to prevent gun-related workplace injuries.Kern said the Oklahoma law criminally prohibits an effective method of cutting down such injuries “and cannot coexist with federal obligations and objectives.”“The court has serious concerns about these criminal laws, which deprive Oklahoma property owners of the right to exclude those individuals carrying and transporting firearms in their vehicles,” Kern said. However, Kern said the court’s protection of Oklahoma citizens’ property rights is limited by U.S. Supreme Court decisions interpreting due process and the takings clause of the U.S. Constitution.Copyright © 2007 The Journal Record All Rights Reserved
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