So I’m reading this article in the Daily Montanan: Billings man pleads guilty to illegal gun possession inside school zone and, since my place borders the school, I wonder how the law could affect me.
In Billings, the article describes the guy who got busted: “Metcalf was charged and arrested late last August after he earlier in the month, on multiple occasions, was seen pacing his front yard and walking down the street with a .20-gauge shotgun, sometimes staring into traffic or at Broadwater Elementary School, which is across the street from the home he shares with his mother, according to court documents.
When Billings police talked to him after numerous complaints were made, he told them that his next-door neighbor and others were stalking him and that he believed the neighbor was working to place bombs in his yard.”
Okay – the dude is 49 years old, lives with his mother, and figures that his neighbor is stalking him. I probably don’t have a lot to worry about. Still, it doesn’t take long to review research someone else has provided. The Legality Of Carrying Within 1000 Feet Of A School Zone – Concealed Nation gives a few more answers. I’m fine on the place, because it’s my “private property, not part of a school zone.” On the other hand, there’s the road:
“School Zone — The area of 1,000 feet around a public, parochial or private school. 18 U.S. Code § 921 – Definitions (a)(25) This includes roadways, highways, and any ground not considered private property.
A school is defined as any state-defined location providing elementary and secondary education. This covers the arena, in most states, of grades K through 12.
It shall be unlawful for any individual knowingly to possess a firearm that has moved in or that otherwise affects interstate or foreign commerce at a place that the individual knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone.”
Okay – basically, we have about 2000 feet of Fortine Creek Road that is gun-free by federal law? How do we deal with that limitation?
“If you’re legally allowed to possess a firearm but not legally allowed to carry it onto school grounds, you’re still allowed to have it within your vehicle so long as it is unloaded and in a locked container — much the same as the rules that apply for interstate travel clauses for FOPA.”
So if I am reading that right, I need to have the gun unloaded and in a locked box for those 2000 feet of Fortine Creek Road. This may be Trego’s most frequently broken federal law. Heck, it may be violated more often than the 35 mph speed limit.
From the first article, I get the feel that a Montana Concealed Carry Permit doesn’t include permission to carry in a school zone – so here’s what you need to do to drive past Trego School legally:
“If your state (or the state you’re driving in) does not allow concealed carry in school zones then the 1,000 foot perimeter is enforced while on the property of the school and while traveling any road provided by taxpayer money. So if you’re traveling a public road, pull over, unload your firearm and lock it in the glovebox (or similar) until you drive past the radius of 1,000 feet.
After you have passed through the school zone, you may pull over, load your handgun, and put it back in your inside the waistband concealed carry holster.”
Like I said – I’m beginning to believe this is Trego’s most frequently broken federal law. I have no idea how many of my neighbors, or even how many hunters each fall habitually break this law – but, since I don’t see many people pulling over to unload the firearm and put it in a locked box, or taking it from that locked box, I suspect violations of the law are more common than not.
As always, click the links for more complete information. Federal Consequences of Possessing or Discharging a Gun in a School Zone explains the potential penalties:
“ A violation of possessing or discharging a firearm in a school zone is a misdemeanor under federal law (18 U.S.C. section 924 (a)(4)). However, punishment can be quite severe.
If you are convicted of violating gun-free school zone laws pursuant to 18 U.S.C. section 922(q), you face up to five years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $5,000.
Additionally, if you are convicted of a separate federal offense during the same criminal proceeding, the law expressly prohibits a conviction under the Gun-Free School Zone Act from running concurrently with any other sentence. If you are sentenced to a prison term, you would be required to serve this sentence in addition to and consecutive to any other term of imprisonment.”
Drive with care.
Trego's Mountain Ear 
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