GCO working to remove Woodstock, GA's ban on carry

[DJAteOhAte]

http://www.georgiapacking.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3191

I don't live in Woodstock, although I'm close. While browsing Municode for firearm regs for discharding a firearm I ran across the following (bold is mine):

Sec. 58-32. Discharging firearms.
No person shall shoot or fire any firearms such as pistols or shotguns, except law enforcement officers in the execution of their duty and/or persons participating in special events held in accordance with a valid city permit. No firearms shall be pointed toward any person while such firearms are either loaded or unloaded. No loaded firearms shall be carried on the streets, except in the case of law enforcement officers.
(Code 1989, § 11-1-2)

The bolded section sounds like it is contrary to state law...yes? No provision made for GFL holders.

I just left a voice mail with the city manager.

http://www.woodstockga.gov/index.asp?nid=67

I just got a call back from Mr. Gleason. He was very nice and seemed very willing to get any conflicts resolved. He wasn't personally familiar with either the ordinance or its enforcement, but said he would get in touch with the chief of police and legal counsel to see what might need to be done.

He also mentioned that he carries. BUT, he said he carries on a Florida non-res permit. I suggested that he continue chekcing with his legal team because he would need to get a GFL to be legal as a GA resident.

So, this is going well so far.

I got another call back from Mr. Gleason. He spoke with the chief and ,after reviewing the ordinance and state code, realized that the ordinance was clearly preempted. The chief is apparently new to the job and wasn't familiar with GA gun laws. They talked with some more experienced officers and they knew that the ordinance was preempted, it was just never changed. They also said that the ordinance had never been enforced anyway.

Actually, they were under the impression that no permit was required for open carry, only for concealed.

Mr. Gleason thanked me for bringing the matter to his attention and said he was going to get the ball rolling to get the ordinance updated. I let him know that I would be keeping my eye on the published city council agendas and thanked him for taking such quick action.