The Athens Banner Herald ran an article this morning announcing the news.

The Georgia Court of Appeals ruled against Coweta County on Dec. 4 in a similar challenge filed by GeorgiaCarry.org, a Fayetteville-based group that advocates more freedom for gun owners. A three-judge panel unanimously overturned a June Coweta County Superior Court decision upholding the Coweta County law.

The appeals court decision sets a statewide precedent, but Athens-Clarke Attorney Bill Berryman said he thinks Coweta officials may ask the appeals court to reconsider its decision or ask the state Supreme Court to issue a final ruling.

. . .

GeorgiaCarry.org asked Athens-Clarke officials in November to lift its ban on guns in parks on behalf of Donald Walker, a retired Athens police officer. The organization says state law prohibits cities and counties from restricting where people can carry guns.

In most of the dozen communities where GeorgiaCarry.org has challenged gun restrictions, officials decided to ditch the law. But Athens-Clarke Mayor Heidi Davison and commissioners decided to fight the year-old group’s efforts to overturn the law in Athens.

As a legal matter, the pre-emption statute incorporated into the state code is clear and unambiguous, as is an unofficial opinion issued by the state attorney general’s office and existing case law. Thus, I have every confidence the challenge to the local ordinance will be successful.

However, given the dictatorial attitude and willingness of the unified government to pursue losing – and expensive – causes in the courts (cases involving the rental registration program, the condemnation of the land for the eastside park, and appointments to the hospital authority come immediately to mind), I am not optimistic.

James Garland
Winterville

Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on 121407

OnlineAthens.com wrote:

Terry Joe Sprinkle: Athens-Clarke is wrong on issue of gun control Story updated at 6:07 PM on Thursday, December 13, 2007 With regard to its prohibition of guns in public parks, the Athens-Clarke County government is substituting its judgment for state law. GeorgiaCarry.org, which has filed a legal challenge to the Athens-Clarke ordinance, is just asking the county to follow state law as written – no more, no less. The major reason the pre-emption law with respect to firearms was passed in the Georgia legislature was to keep local municipalities from enacting conflicting or arbitrary laws on firearm sales, transfers, Georgia firearm licenses, transport and local ordinances. The latter is exactly what Athens-Clarke County has done. There are only three ordinances dealing with guns that are within the purview of local governments: reasonable regulations on not shooting in the city limits; on not shooting near major roads; whether government employees can carry weapons or not, and the right to require, or not, that a firearm be in all homes. Athens-Clarke County clearly has not complied with clearly written state laws on the issue of guns in public parks. Terry Joe Sprinkle Warrenton Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on 121407

Court of Appeals Rejects County’s Firearms Ordinance?Fayette Citizen, December 6, 2007

Coweta Ruling Bodes Ill for Ban on Guns in Parks Athens Banner Herald, December 7, 2007

Thompson: Looking at the World through a Gun Sight?Athens Banner Herald, December 9, 2007 – In this opinion piece, Thompson implies that we are all paranoid and delusional for thinking that we might be the victim of a criminal attack in a park.??Thompson states, “GeorgiaCarry.org, a gun-rights group claiming several hundred members, is working – successfully, as it turns out – to force its sad vision of how people should have to live on a number of communities, including Athens-Clarke County.” Forcing our vision?? I thought it was the gun banners who wanted to put people in jail for carrying firearms?in parks. Is anybody proposing jailing people for not carrying a firearm?? Which side is “forcing” its vision on the other?

http://www.georgiacarry.com/athens_clarke_parks