Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
On Monday a federal judge upheld a gun ban at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest airport. U.S. District Judge Marvin Shoob expressed concern that allowing guns at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport could cause significant economic damage and could be a “serious threat to public safety and welfare.”
His decision rejected a request by GeorgiaCarry.org that would have temporarily allowed gun owners to carry their weapons in the airport until his final ruling on the gun ban — a challenge that could likely last months.
After all this GeorgiaCarry.org sued the city and the airport, claiming that the airport qualifies as mass transportation under the new state law. Attorney John Monroe told the judge repeatedly that no law makes it a crime for residents with permits to bring their guns into terminals, parking lots and other unsecured areas.
City officials quickly declared the airport a “gun-free zone” and warned that anyone carrying a gun there would be arrested.
Gov. Sonny Perdue, who signed the bill into law in May, supports the lawsuit. The Republican suggested that his own wife might want to carry a firearm for long walks between the parking lot and the airport’s terminal.
City officials have angrily fired back, arguing that allowing some residents to carry guns at the airport could pose a dire threat to the millions of passengers it serves each year. Even an accidental firearm discharge, they say, could cause mayhem.
The airport officials are quietly devising a backup plan to avoid any kind of “stampede” caused by the news. They have asked the Transportation Security Administration to amend the airport’s federal security program so that guns are banned in all areas, including certain parking facilities.
TSA officials said the agency is reviewing the request, the first such appeal it has ever received.
Rep. Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, has also urged the agency to strengthen its restrictions and warned that Congress could intervene if national regulations are not adopted.
The judge’s ruling was a defeat for GeorgiaCarry.org, a two-year-old group that has won a string of victories reversing city and county firearm restrictions around the state. But state Rep. Tim Bearden, a Republican who co-sponsored the law, said it was only a temporary setback.
“In the long run, the Constitution always prevails,” said Bearden, a former police officer who wore a yellow tie imprinted with the document’s words. “At least, it’s supposed to.”
If you’re planning a trip to Atlanta, here are some unique things to do in Altanta.
I went through the airport this thursday and forgot my loaded clip in my bag. Yes..it was my fault for not clearing my bag but there was NO weapon and i asked if i could take the clip out to my car and leave it there. The Atlanta police officer was a dick about it and said no i have to destroy it. I watched him remove my bullets from the clip and never put them anywhere. He was looking around as to see if anyone was watching him so he could put it in his pocket. I want proof of this clip being destroyed and an explanation of why a Gun permit carrying American was treated like a criminal and my possessions taken. They gave me the opportunity to have my lotion and bath wash sent back to me by mail that was over 3oz so why could they not give me the opportunity to have my clip sent back. We don’t destroy peoples cars when they get tickets for speeding or drunk driving. Why a harmless Gun Clip. Chad Nichols