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May 7, 2014 |
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In The News |
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Dear Colorado Members and Friends, |
Last Summer, either in the media, the Internet, or elsewhere, you may
have heard about a court decision regarding possession of a firearm in a
post office parking lot. Some news outlets have titled their stories
"YOU CAN CARRY IN THE POST OFFICE PARKING LOT - NEW COURT DECISION!"
U.S. Law Shield of Colorado would like to give you a closer look at the
decision, and what this means for you. To provide a short answer, this
heavily fact based opinion of a U.S. District Court in Colorado does not
currently provide any legal protection for anyone at any post office
other than the Avon, Colorado post office addressed in the opinion. At
best, it provides an argument that can be used should you get arrested
and hauled into court. To provide a greater understanding of what
happened, we first need to understand the court decision itself, and the
legal concept of precedence.
The Colorado Federal District Court Decision
The case in question is Bonidy, et al. v. USPS. In this case, the
court was asked to make a very specific ruling. A man named Tab Bonidy
wanted a ruling as to whether or not it was legal to keep a gun in his
car while he was at the post office. He was challenging the application
of 39 CFR Part 232.1(l), which reads as follows:
Weapons and explosives. No person while on postal property may carry
firearms, other dangerous or deadly weapons, or explosives, either
openly or concealed, or store the same on postal property, except for
official purposes.
In light of the law above, one should consider the very peculiar circumstances of Avon, Colorado:
- The post office does not provide delivery to the public
- They provide free post office boxes to Avon residents
- These post office boxes are the only method of retrieving mail
The judge recognized these facts in his decision which only applies to
this post office's particular circumstances, and no others - yet.
Further, the judge pointed out additional factors to consider in
determining whether or not to allow firearms in car trunks, such as:
does the post office parking lot have restrictions (i.e., is it fenced
in with a gate, are there signs imposing time limits or stating that
vehicles are subject to search), are there outside mail receptacles for
patrons, what type of government business is done there (loading of post
office vehicles), and do high numbers of people congregate in the post
office for other purposes?
The U.S. District Court of Colorado held that concealed carry license
holders are allowed to have a firearm in their locked trunk, or have it
otherwise secured in their vehicle under these circumstances. This does
not mean a person can concealed carry on their body in the parking lot,
or open carry.
For those not visiting this post office in Avon, the decision made by
the court definitely does not set the law of the land. It repeatedly
touched on the fact that there should be no general rules (either for or
against firearm carrying). Unless the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals
issues an opinion, based on an appeal of this case, there is no general
rule or guidelines for the Colorado Post Offices other than the current
federal law in 39 CFR 232.1(l).
Precedent: Does the ruling set any legal precedent for other parts of the country? NO.
Precedent is a rule, guideline, or other legal principle established by
case law that is binding on other courts when there is a case with
similar issues or facts. To put it another way, precedent is best
illustrated when a court makes a decision guided by previous rulings.
With that said, there are two types of precedent: horizontal and
vertical.
Vertical is the traditionally considered concept of precedent; when a
higher court dictates their interpretation of the law in a certain fact
scenario, a lower court may not overrule their decisions. For example,
the Colorado Supreme Court is the highest civil state court, and any
precedent set at that level must be followed by the Courts of Appeal and
the trial courts in Colorado. Similarly, decisions by the Courts of
Appeal are binding on the Colorado trial courts. Federal courts are
similarly structured; District Courts should respect the precedence of
the Circuit Courts of Appeal, and both must follow the precedence set by
the United States Supreme Court.
However, this is where things can get complicated. Federal appellate
level courts are divided into different circuits. To illustrate,
Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico are in the
10th Circuit Court of Appeals, while Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi
are in the 5th Circuit. A decision in a circuit is binding only on
federal courts in that circuit. So, a case that originates in Kansas is
taken to the 10th Circuit; the decision of the 10th Circuit in that case
is then binding on Federal district courts in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming,
Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
Horizontal precedence is the relation (or lack thereof) between courts
on the same level. The decisions made by different circuits, while they
can be used as persuasive arguments, are not binding on other circuits.
Therefore, a decision made by the 10th Circuit will not bind the 5th
Circuit; similarly, federal district courts in Colorado will not be
bound by the decisions made by the 5th Circuit or U.S. District Courts
in the 5th Circuit.
Those are a lot of words, but what do they mean for us in this
situation? The decision made by the Colorado federal district court is
not binding on any other district courts. If the 10th Circuit makes a
decision, however, it will be binding on federal district courts in
Colorado, Kansas, Utah, Wyoming, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. This Colorado
case can only be used as an argument in other courts.
Ultimately, this decision is a fantastic first step in possibly
expanding a right that seems to shrink more and more every day. The case
has already been appealed to the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, as
Mr. Bonidy was not content with just the parking lot and wants to
pursue carrying in the actual building of the post office. We will keep
you informed of how this case turns out, and whether or not you'll see
any expansion on where you can legally carry your concealed handgun in
Colorado and beyond.
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Telephone: 877-474-7184 Website: www.uslawshield.com
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