Attorney general: Private companies can't ban legal guns at public parks

A private organization operating a public park in Tennessee can't stop licensed handgun permit holders from carrying their weapons into an event, according to a new opinion from the Tennessee attorney general.

The opinion seems to apply to events at Nashville's new Ascend Amphitheater and for next year's Memphis in May celebration. Both take place at public parks but are organized and operated by private organizations.

However, guns will still be banned at Thursday's Eric Church concert, the first event at Ascend Amphitheater, said Metro Law Director Saul Solomon.

"We believe there are several areas in the new legislation that, at least at Ascend Amphitheater, that the state law would not authorize guns in the amphitheater," Solomon said Thursday afternoon.

Although state lawmakers passed a new law that says cities and counties can't stop legal gun carriers from taking their guns to public parks, organizers of Memphis and Nashville events told The Tennessean they planned to ban guns. The new attorney general opinion says they are not allowed to ban those guns when carried by legally licensed permit holders.

"Since counties and municipalities cannot use direct means to prohibit handgun possession by individuals with valid handgun carry permits in their parks, they cannot use indirect means — such as contracting with nonprofit entities to disallow the possession of such handguns in their parks or other recreational facilities," states the opinion from Attorney General Herbert Slatery.

"Since a county or municipality no longer has the authority to prohibit handgun carry permit holders from possessing handguns in public parks and other recreational facilities, a county or municipality cannot convey or delegate any such authority to anyone else, either directly or indirectly."

Senate Minority Leader Lee Harris, D-Memphis, requested the opinion.

"Because we're very disturbed by this, we're convening an emergency conference call with advocates and stakeholders who are as concerned as we are about gun safety," Harris said in response to the opinion.

"Hopefully someone from the governor's office and the sponsor of this legislation will join us, because this could have negative implications across the state."

Harris opposed the new guns-in-parks law, in part because he thought it could lead to weapons at the heavily attended Memphis in May events. However, Memphis in May International Festival President and CEO Jim Holt told The Tennessean the new law won't change anything for the event.

"As a producer of events, we have the right to stipulate rules and guidelines for patrons entering the leased park space to attend our events," Holt said in an emailed statement at the time.

"We prohibit any type of weapon, including pocketknives and we have other restrictions such as food and beverages, chairs, umbrellas, cameras, selfie sticks, etc. for patrons that attend our events."

Similarly, Solomon told The Tennessean in May that Live Nation, the company that operates Ascend Amphitheater, has a no-guns policy at its events and planned to enforce that policy after the venue opens. He argued that the new state law references taking guns to areas owned, used or operated by a local government "for recreational purposes."

"When we think of 'recreating,' it's somebody going out and doing something, not somebody sitting around," Solomon told The Tennessean at the time, referencing why he believed the law didn't apply to the amphitheater.

The venue is set to host its first events Thursday and Friday.

This is a developing story. Check Tennessean.com for more information as it becomes available.

Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892 and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.