On February 16, 2023, a lawsuit was filed by Stephen L. Hughes, Duncan O’Mara, Elaine Kehel, Gun Owners of America, Inc., and Gun Owners Foundation against Bill Lee, in his official capacity as the governor of the state of Tennessee. See, Stephen L. Hughes, et al., v. Bill Lee, Chancery Court for the 28th Judicial District, Gibson County, No: 24475. (A copy of the complaint is included on the TFA's news post). The plaintiffs seek a determination by a state court that Tennessee’s “parks statute” (Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-17-1311) and Tennessee’s state-wide “gun free zone statute” (Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-17-1307) are unconstitutional under the Tennessee Constitution.

In addition to the complaint, plaintiffs filed motion for a preliminary injunction. In that motion, the Plaintiffs ask the court to enter a preliminary and permanent injunction against the State of Tennessee that would prohibit it from further enforcing either the parks statute or the state’s general state-wide gun free zone statute. The lawsuit is based on similar lawsuits that have been filed in other state and federal courts following the United States Supreme Court’s June 2022 ruling in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen.

Tennessee Firearms Association has tried for many years to convince the Tennessee Legislature that it should repeal the gun free zone statute relative to public parks, greenways and other public recreational areas. Rather than doing so, the Legislature has made minor adjustments to the statute which has caused it to operate as a criminal trap for individuals who merely want to be prepared to defend themselves.

Under current law, all firearms are prohibited in all public parks, greenways, campgrounds and other public recreational areas and civic centers. There is a limited exception for permit holders that only applied to handguns which exception was added around 2009 but it did not apply to all local parks. The issue of local parks was addressed in an amendment in 2015, but then changed again in 2017 to allow parks to prohibit firearms even by permit holders under certain circumstances. Then, when the 2021 permitless carry law was enacted it did not allow those carrying without a permit the ability to carry in public parks and left them exposed to criminal prosecution. Further, the Legislature placed and has maintained a “felony trap” in the parks statute such that if the park were to be “used” by a school, the park would be reclassified as a school ground and firearms possession could be charged as a felony.

The second statute addressed in this lawsuit is Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-17-1307(a) which makes it a crime to “carry with intent to go armed” a firearm on any public or private property (including a person’s own residence). The statute effectively creates a state-wide gun free zone. While there are several affirmative defenses to this statute, such as the person was in their own home or that the person had a permit, the burden was on the individual to prove that her activities met all the requirements of the statutory defense. Further, because the crime was “carrying with intent to go armed”, any person observed carrying a firearm was subject to a law enforcement stop, detention, questioning and potential charges unless they could convince the officer that a valid defense applied at which point the decision to charge or arrest would be in the officer’s discretion.

You can support efforts like this by joining TFA and/or GOA maintaining your memberships. If you are a member, you can also make supplemental donations that help fund and offset this kind of litigation which is sometimes necessary when elected officials either fail to act or, worse, act in knowing disregard of constitutional restrictions.

Don't forget to use the TFA's advocacy letter writing tool to contact your legislators to push for REAL constitutional carry and removal of unconstitutional gun free zones!