Impact of Firearms Laws on Airports (2016)

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38 exceptions, Minnesota prohibits the possession of a “BB gun, rifle, shotgun on or about a person in a pub- lic place that includes property owned, leased, or con- trolled by a governmental unit,” and further provides that it is a felony for a person to carry a “semiauto- matic military-style assault weapon in a public place.”403 New York requires the state police superin- tendent to create and maintain an Internet Web site to educate the public on the semiautomatic rifles, shotguns, pistols, and other weapons that are illegal in New York.404 Oregon law prohibits machine guns as well as other weapons.405 Virginia prohibits the carrying of loaded semiau- tomatic rifles and pistols that are “equipped at the time of the offense with a magazine that will hold more than 20 rounds of ammunition” or of a “shot- gun with a magazine that will hold more than seven rounds of the longest ammunition…” on any public street, road, alley, sidewalk, public right-of-way, or other public place in eight cities and five counties in the state.406 The Virginia statute, therefore, applies to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington County and to Washington Dulles International Airport located in Fairfax and Loudoun Counties, as well as to airports in Newport News, Norfolk, and Richmond. In summary, there are state laws that are also applicable to firearms at an airport that prohibit the possession of firearms by persons convicted of a felony or other serious crime, persons under the age of 21 (or 18 in some states), persons under the influence of alcohol or illegal controlled sub- stances, or persons carrying a firearm prohibited by state law. VIII. STATE LAWS THAT ALLOW PRIVATE ESTABLISHMENTS TO PROHIBIT FIREARMS A. Introduction Numerous vendors of goods and services may be found in airports. As shown in this section of the digest, state law usually allows private businesses, including those who lease space for a business, to prohibit firearms on the business premises. Some hotel chains, for example, that are found on airport property or in close proximity to an airport have policies that prohibit firearms on the hotel premises unless secured in the manner required by hotel Delaware statute, however, does define the percent- age of “alcohol concentration” in a person’s blood that is required for a person to be guilty of unlawful possession of a firearm.394 D. Possession of a Firearm that Is Illegal Under State Law There are state statutes that prohibit the posses- sion of certain kinds of firearms,395 regardless of whether they are carried in an airport or elsewhere, including assault rifles or pistols,396 machine guns,397 short-barrel rifles, short-barrel shotguns, and silenc- ers,398 as well as armor-piercing ammunition.399 California prohibits the possession of numerous assault weapons by model and number,400 as well as other firearms having the features described by stat- ute.401 Nevada prohibits the possession of a machine gun, which is defined as a firearm that is capable of shooting more than one shot without manual reload- ing by a simple function of the trigger.402 With some 394 del. Code Ann. tit. 11, § 1460(b)(4) (2015). See also lA. rev. stAt. Ann. § 40.1379.3(H)(3)(I)(1) (2015); minn. stAt. § 624.7142(3) (2015); neB. rev. stAt. Ann. § 69-2441(5) (LexisNexis 2015); ohio rev. Code Ann. § 2923.16 (D)(2) (LexisNexis 2015). 395 AlAskA stAt. § 1.61.200 (2015) (stating that prohibited weapons include a firearm capable of shooting more than one shot automatically without manual reloading by a sin- gle function of the trigger). 396 N.J. stAt. Ann. § 2C:39-5(f) (2015) (prohibiting assault firearms); hAW. rev. stAt. Ann. § 134-4(e) (LexisNexis 2015) (prohibiting assault pistols). 397 flA. stAt. Ann. § 790.06(1) (LexisNexis 2015) (provid- ing that a license to carry a concealed firearm does not include a machine gun); 720 ill. Comp. stAt. Ann. 5/24-1 (LexisNexis 2015) (prohibiting machine gun and short- barrel rifles and shotguns); N.J. rev. stAt. § 2C:39-5(a) (2015) (prohibiting machine gun). 398 or. rev. stAt. §§ 166.272(1), (2) (2015) (unlawful to possess a machine gun, short-barreled rifle or shotgun, or silencer), but see or. rev. stAt. §§ 166.272(3), (4) (2015) (no charge or arrest if prohibited weapon holder is registered as required under federal law); R.I. gen. lAWs §§ 11-47- 8(a), (b) (2015) (prohibiting machine guns and sawed-off shotguns or sawed-off rifles); tenn. Code Ann. §§ 39-17- 1302(a)(3)-(5) (2015) (prohibiting possession of a machine gun, short-barrel rifle or shotgun, or firearm silencer); tex. penAl Code Ann. §§ 46.05(a)(1)(A)–(D) (2015) (prohibiting an explosive weapon, machine gun, short-barreled fore- arm, or a firearm silencer); Wis. stAt. § 175.60(1)(bm) (2015) (license to carry concealed weapon excludes from definition of handgun a machine gun, short-barreled rifle, or short-barreled shotgun as defined in the section). 399 or. rev. stAt. § 166.350(1) (2015) (unlawful to pos- sess armor-piercing ammunition). 400 CAl. penAl Code § 30510 (Deering 2015). 401 CAl. penAl Code § 30515 (Deering 2015); see also CAl. penAl Code § 30945 (Deering 2015). 402 nev. rev. stAt. Ann. §§ 202.450(1), (8)(c) (LexisNexis 2015). 403 minn. stAt. §§ 624.7181(1)(c), (5) (2015) (with some exceptions). 404 N.Y. penAl lAW § 400.00(16a), (b) (Consul. 2015). 405 or. rev. stAt. § 166.272 (2015). 406 vA. Code Ann. § 18.2-287.4 (2015).

39 implements, and manages the agreements.412 When an airport uses the prime concessionaire approach, the airport leases all of the retail or dining space to one or two companies.413 When using the third-party developer approach, the airport leases all locations in a terminal or terminals to a company that special- izes in developing and managing concession pro- grams.414 Finally, similar to the third-party developer approach, an airport may engage a leasing manager that ordinarily does not operate any space in the air- port but rather provides “expertise in commercial leasing and property management,” for which the leasing manager receives a fee.415 B. State Statutes Permitting Private Establishments to Prohibit Firearms There is statutory authority for private individu- als or entities that own or lease property to prohibit the possession of firearms in their establishments.416 In general, one who owns or controls an establish- ment and decides to ban firearms must post conspic- uous signs informing members of the public that firearms are prohibited, including in many states those individuals who have a license to carry a fire- arm or to carry a concealed firearm.417 Minnesota policy.407 The courts have upheld the right of a property owner or employer to prohibit firearms on the prem- ises.408 Judge Posner of the Seventh Circuit observed in his opinion in Moore v. Madigan409 that many states [p]ermit private businesses and other private institutions (such as churches) to ban guns from their premises. If enough private institutions decided to do that, the right to carry a gun in public would have much less value and might rarely be exercised—in which event the invalidation of the Illinois law might have little effect….410 The terms of airport leases with private parties for bars, hotels, restaurants, rental car agencies, and retail shops no doubt differ on what is allowed. The agreements between airports and private parties are leases of which there are four types, however: direct leasing, prime concessionaire, third-party developer, and leasing manager.411 With direct leasing agree- ments, the airport operator solicits, awards, 407 grAnd hyAtt dAll. fort-Worth, http://granddfw.hyatt. com/en/hotel/our-hotel/firearms-policy.html (last visited Dec. 23, 2015) (stating that guests or visitors who lawfully are permitted to possess a firearm may carry a firearm on the hotel premises for “storage purposes only”; that a firearm must be unloaded, secured in a locked, hard-sided firearm container provided by the guest; that a firearm must be safeguarded at all times in a guest room (or personal vehi- cle) except when a guest or visitor is transporting the fire- arm into or out of the hotel; and that there are no exceptions even for “those licensed and permitted to carry a firearm, and/or where applicable, to conceal-carry a firearm”); hyAtt plACe sAn Antonio Airport/QuArry mArket, http://san antonioairport.place.hyatt.com/en/hotel/our-hotel/firearms- policy.html (last visited Dec. 23, 2015) (stating a similar policy); homeWood suites By hilton houston–kingWood pArC–Airport AreA, http://homewoodsuites3.hilton.com/en/ hotels/texas/homewood-suites-by-hilton-houston- kingwood-parc-airport-area-HOUKWHW/about/policies. html (last visited Dec. 23, 2015) (stating that “[c]arrying a weapon on these premises is prohibited and violators may be subject to arrest for trespass under applicable law”). 408 Stewart v. FedEx Express, No. 11222-2013, 2014 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 68, at *1, *11 (Pa. Ct. Com. Pl. June 24, 2014) ((holding that there is no statute that pro- hibits an employer from restricting an individual’s right to carry a firearm on the employer’s property), aff’d, 114 A.3d 424 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2015)); Hansen v. Am. Online, Inc., 96 P.3d 950, 951, 955 (Utah 2004) (holding in a wrongful ter- mination case involving employees who were fired when they were recorded transferring their firearms to other vehicles in the employer’s parking lot in violation of the employer’s policy that the right to bear arms in Utah does not supersede an employer’s right to restrict firearms on its private property). See also Murphy v. United States, 293 A.2d 849, 849–850 (D.C. Cir. 1972) (upholding the defen- dant’s conviction for carrying a pistol without a license after the defendant was arrested for carrying a gun in a restaurant in the District of Columbia). 409 702 F.3d 933 (7th Cir. 2012). 410 Id. at 941. 411 Resource Manual for Airport In-Terminal Conces- sions, trAnsportAtion reseArCh BoArd 121 (2011), http:// onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/acrp/acrp_rpt_054.pdf. 412 Id. at 125. 413 Id. at 122–23. 414 Id. at 123–24. 415 Id. at 125. 416 gA. Code Ann. § 16-11-135(k) (2015) (statute not intended to restrict rights of private property owners or persons in legal control of property to control access to property); idAho Code Ann. § 18-3302(24) (2015); ind. Code Ann. § 35-47-2-1(d) (LexisNexis 2015) (providing that a person owning, leasing, renting, or otherwise in control of private property is not prohibited from regulating or pro- hibiting the possession of firearms on the property). 417 AlA. Code § 13A-11-61.2(a) (LexisNexis 2015); gA. Code Ann. § 16-11-127(c) (2015) (person holding weapons- carry license may be excluded from private property by owners or persons in legal control without risk of civil action for damages); 430 ill. Comp. stAt. Ann. 66/65(a-10) (LexisNexis 2015) (providing that as long as signs are posted in accordance with the statute, an owner or one in control of private real property of any type may prohibit the carrying of concealed firearms, including a person licensed pursuant to the state’s Firearm Concealed Carry Act); kAn. rev. stAt. Ann. § 75-7c10(a) (LexisNexis 2015) (stating that “[t]he carrying of a concealed handgun shall not be prohibited in any building unless such building is conspicuously posted in accordance with rules and regula- tions adopted by the attorney general”); ky. rev. stAt. Ann. § 237.110(17) (LexisNexis 2015) (authorizing an owner, lessee, or manager of a private enterprise to prohibit licensees from carrying concealed weapons on the prem- ises); neB. rev. stAt. Ann. § 69-2441(a) (LexisNexis 2015) (permit holder not authorized to carry a concealed hand- gun on property when “the person, persons, entity, or enti- ties in control of the property or employer in control of the property has prohibited permit holders from carrying

40 private property…have the right to exclude or eject a person who is in possession of a weapon or long gun on their private property….”421 In Missouri, any private property owner may post the premises as being off-limits to concealed firearms by means of one or more signs displayed in a conspicuous place…. The owner, business or commercial lessee, [or] manager of a private business enterprise…may prohibit persons holding a concealed carry permit or endorsement from carrying concealed firearms on the premises….422 Ohio has a similar statute that applies to persons having a license to carry a concealed handgun.423 West Virginia makes it clear in its law that “any owner, lessee or other person charged with the care, custody and control of real property may prohibit the carrying openly or concealed of any firearm or deadly weapon on property under his or her domain….”424 Businesses located in an airport serving the pub- lic are also employers. In South Carolina, a person having a permit to carry a “concealable weapon” may not enter a place clearly marked with a sign prohibiting the carrying of a concealable weapon in or on the premises.425 Furthermore, South Carolina law provides: Nothing contained in this article shall in any way be con- strued to limit, diminish, or otherwise infringe upon: allows a business owner or operator to inform some- one personally that firearms are prohibited.418 State laws vary on how a license to carry a con- cealed firearm affects an owner’s or occupant’s right to ban firearms. In Alabama, a person may not carry a firearm on private property without a valid con- cealed weapons permit.419 It appears that in many states, such as Arkansas, however, that a licensee may not carry a concealed handgun when “the per- son or entity exercising control over the physical location…[places] at each entrance…a written notice clearly readable at a distance of not less than ten feet (10’) that ‘carrying a handgun is prohibited.’”420 In Georgia, “private property owners or persons in legal control of private property through a lease, rental agreement, licensing agreement, contract, or any other agreement to control access to such concealed handguns into or onto the place or premises….”); N.M. stAt. Ann. § 29-19-12(C) (LexisNexis 2015) (recogniz- ing authority of private property owner to disallow the car- rying of a concealed handgun onto the owner’s property); S.C. Code Ann. § 16-23-465(B)(2) (2015) (stating that an establishment selling alcoholic liquor, beer, or wine for con- sumption on premises may prohibit the carrying of con- cealable weapons by posting sign in compliance with the statute); tenn. Code Ann. §§ 39-17-1359(a)(1), (2) (2015) (authorizing, except as provided in § 39-17-1313, an indi- vidual, corporation, business entity, or local, state, or fed- eral government entity or agent thereof “to prohibit the possession of weapons by any person who is at a meeting conducted by, or on property owned, operated, or managed or under the control of the individual, corporation, busi- ness entity or government entity, including by any person who is authorized to carry a firearm by authority of § 39-17-1351”); utAh Code Ann. § 76-10-505(1)(c) (LexisNexis 2015) (stating that unless otherwise autho- rized by law, a person may not carry a loaded firearm in a posted, prohibited area). 418 minn. stAt. §§ 624.714(17)(a), (b)(1) (2015) (providing that the operator of a private, posted establishment also may personally inform a person that firearms are prohibited). 419 AlA. Code § 13A-11-52 (LexisNexis 2015), but see AlA. Code § 13A-11-61.2(b) (LexisNexis 2015), which states: [A] person, including a person with a permit issued under Section 13A-11-75(a)(1) or recognized under Section 13A-11-85, may not, without the express permission of a person or entity with authority over the premises, know- ingly possess or carry a firearm inside any building or facil- ity to which access of unauthorized persons and prohibited articles is limited during normal hours of operation by the continuous posting of guards and the use of other security features, including, but not limited to, magnetometers, key cards, biometric screening devices, or turnstiles or other physical barriers. See also idAho Code Ann. §§ 18-3302(3), (4) (2015). 420 Ark. Code Ann. § 5-73-306(19)(A)(i) (2015). See also Ark. Att’y Gen. Op. Opinion No. 2015-064, supra note 157 (stating that under Arkansas law a private property owner or occupant “is entitled to keep handguns (and other fire- arms) off” the owner’s or occupant’s property) (citing Ark. Code Ann. § 5-39-203 (Repl. 2013)). 421 gA. Code Ann. § 16-11-127(c) (2015) (also stating “in accordance with O.C.G.A § 16-7-21(3)(b) except as pro- vided in § 16-11-135”). 422 mo. rev. stAt. § 571.107(1.)(15) (2015) (providing fur- ther that “[i]f the building or the premises are open to the public, the employer of the business enterprise shall post signs on or about the premises if carrying a concealed fire- arm is prohibited….”). mo. rev. stAt. § 571.107(1.)(15) (2015) also states that the [p]ossession of a firearm in a vehicle on the premises shall not be a criminal offense so long as the firearm is not removed from the vehicle or brandished while the vehicle is on the premises. An employer may prohibit employees or other persons holding a concealed carry permit or endorse- ment from carrying a concealed firearm in vehicles owned by the employer… See also mo. rev. stAt. § 571.107(2) (2015) (providing that holder of concealed-carry permit or a concealed-carry endorsement is subject only to denial of access to or removal from the premises). 423 ohio rev. Code Ann. § 2923.126(c)(3)(a) (LexisNexis 2015) (stating that “the owner or person in control of private land or premises, and a private person or entity leasing land or premises owned by the state, the United States, or a polit- ical subdivision of the state or the United States, may post a sign in a conspicuous location on that land or on those prem- ises prohibiting persons from carrying firearms or concealed firearms on or onto that land or those premises”). 424 W. VA. Code Ann. § 61-7-14 (LexisNexis 2015) (empha- sis added). 425 S.C. Code Ann. § 23-31-215 (M)(10) (2015).