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Gun-Free School Zones Act

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The Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 is a federal law signed by President George H. W. Bush on November 29, 1990, that established criminal penalties for possessing or discharging a firearm in a school zone. The legislation included certain exceptions, such as for the discharge of a firearm by law enforcement officers. The law was amended following the Supreme Court decision in United States v. Lopez, which ruled that the law was unconstitutional. Following the United States v. Lopez decision, the law was amended to limit application to guns affected by interstate or foreign commerce.[1][2]

Background

The Gun-Free School Zones Act was established by Congress in 1990 to prohibit the possession of firearms in school zones. The legislation was introduced in an effort to reduce school shootings and protect students and teachers. Rep. William Hughes (D-NJ) stated in his opening statement to the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Crime, "This bill, sponsored by our esteemed colleague Ed Feighan, addresses the increasing problems and tragedies which occur all too regularly when guns are brought onto school property. We are bombarded by news reports of yet another student or teacher killing at the hands of either an armed and deranged person, or by an angry and armed fellow student."[3][4]

Provisions

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The Gun-Free School Zones Act amended Title 18 of the federal criminal code to prohibit the possession or discharge of a firearm in a school zone. Individuals who violated the act were to be subject to a maximum of $5,000 in fines and/or a maximum of five years in prison.[1]

For the purposes of the law, a school zone was defined as "in, or on the grounds of, a public, parochial or private school; or within a distance of 1,000 feet from the grounds of a public, parochial or private school."[1]

Exceptions

The Gun-Free School Zones Act listed several exceptions in which the law did not apply. These exceptions primarily included law enforcement officers acting in an official capacity and the use of a firearm as part of a school program. The list of exceptions included:

“ (i) on private property not part of school grounds;
`(ii) if the individual possessing the firearm is licensed to do so by the State in which the school zone is located or a political subdivision of the State, and the law of the State or political subdivision requires that, before an individual obtain such a license, the law enforcement authorities of the State or political subdivision verify that the individual is qualified under law to receive the license;
`(iii) which is--
`(I) not loaded; and
`(II) in a locked container, or a locked firearms rack which is in a motor vehicle;
`(iv) by an individual for use in a program approved by a school in the school zone;
`(v) by an individual in accordance with a contract entered into between a school in the school zone and the individual or an employer of the individual;
`(vi) by a law enforcement officer acting in his or her official capacity; or
`(vii) that is unloaded and is possessed by an individual while traversing school premises for the purpose of gaining access to public or private lands open to hunting, if the entry on school premises is authorized by school authorities.[5]
 ”
—Gun Free School Zones Act of 1990[1]

1995 Amendment

United States v. Lopez was a case decided by the United States Supreme Court on April 26, 1995, that held that the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 was unconstitutional. The case concerned a high school student's conviction after bringing a concealed weapon to school. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Congress had overstepped the boundaries of their constitutional power to regulate interstate commerce and established that the act was unconstitutional.[6]

Following the decision, the Department of Justice amended the language of the Gun-Free School Zones Act to apply only to a firearm "that has moved in or that otherwise affects interstate or foreign commerce."[7]

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Gun + Free + School + Zones + Act"

Gun-Free School Zones Act News Feed

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Congress.gov, "S.2070 - Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990," accessed October 10, 2022
  2. ↑ Britannica, "Gun-Free School Zones Act," accessed October 10, 2022
  3. ↑ Congress of the U.S., "Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. Hearing on H.R. 3757 before the Subcommittee on Crime of the Committee on the Judiciary. House of Representatives, One Hundred First Congress, Second Session," accessed October 11, 2022
  4. ↑ U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, "GUN-FREE SCHOOL ZONES ACT OF 1990," accessed October 10, 2022
  5. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  6. ↑ Justia, "United States v. Lopez, 514 U.S. 549 (1995)," accessed October 10, 2022
  7. ↑ Duke Law Journal, "THE AMENDED GUN-FREE SCHOOL ZONES ACT: DOUBT AS TO ITS CONSTITUTIONALITY REMAINS," accessed October 10, 2022
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