txglock21 wrote:
A spokesman for GISD (owners of the venue) was interviewed yesterday and said because it was built with bond monies, local, state and federal, that they could not pick and choose who they rent to or not. But, he also said they are going to meet with the attorney to see if they could find a "loophole" for in the future. My biggest issue is the center in posted 30.06, but that is a whole other rabbit hole I'm not going down.
I'll go down the 30.06 rabbit hole. Is this venue an "educational institution" where CC is prohibited, or is it a government-owned building where CC can't be prohibited? I already wrote to my state senator and representative. Here's what I sent them:
[Mr./Ms. Senator/Representative],
In light of Sunday's terrorist attack at the Garland ISD Special Events Center, the law needs to be changed to provide clarity on whether a Concealed Handgun License (CHL) holder can legally carry a concealed weapon into a facility that is owned by a school district, but that is commonly leased out to the public for non-school activities.
The Texas Penal Code (PC) §46.03(a)(1) states that weapons are prohibited at an educational institution, but the statute does not clearly define "educational institution". PC §30.06(e) says that concealed carry generally may not be prohibited in a government-owned building; but if the building is deemed an "educational institution", then it seems that PC §46.03(a)(1) would prevail.
I personally have attended a non-school religious cultural event at the GISD Sepcial Events Center. As a CHL holder, I would have felt much safer if I could have carried a concealed weapon to protect myself and my family against senseless violence such as what we saw on May 3.
Maybe concealed carry is already legal for most non-school events at the GISD Special Events Center. But maybe it isn't. This is a gray area caused by a lack of legislative clarity. Most CHL holders will not carry a concealed weapon there because they don't want to be a legal test case. I certainly don't.
To summarize, a special events center owned by an Independent School District and commonly leased out to third parties should be treated no differently than any other government-owned arena/convention center/events center. Concealed carry should be allowed here. Please update the Penal Code to clarify that mere ownership by an Independent School District does not make a facility an "educational institution". (Alternatively we could legalize concealed carry at all educational institutions, but that's another discussion.)
Thank you,
[me]