Banning Firearms on School Grounds

Little Harbour School in Portsmouth.

This morning, Rep. Becky McBeath and I met with School Board Vice Chairwoman Kristin Jeffrey and a group of Little Harbour School parents to discuss gun-free zones in NH schools.

For those of you not familiar with the story, in late November a child attending Little Harbour School in Portsmouth found an ammunition clip with live rounds that had fallen out of the pocket of a parent. Fortunately, the child turned it in and no one was harmed. As for the parent? No charges were brought because none were possible under NH law.

The story was covered by the Portsmouth Herald. As the parents started talking with each other, many found themselves shocked to find out that someone could act this carelessly in their own community. But some were even more shocked to learn that in our state it's PERFECTLY LEGAL to carry firearms and ammunition--either concealed or carried out in the open--on the grounds of our K-12 schools. While the Federal Crime Act of 1990 bans firearms on school campuses, the NH law skirts this law by eliminating permitting requirements, making no differentiation between law enforcement officers on campuses and anyone else choosing to tote around a firearm on school grounds.

Another surprise was that NH laws regarding negligent storage of firearms not only don't cover carelessly dropped ammunition--they also wouldn't have applied to a dropped fully-loaded firearm. This is because our state law is only triggered if a child finds the firearm AND uses it to commit a crime, threaten someone else, or discharges it. 

“In most NH communities, you can’t bring a dog onto school grounds because no one wants to deal with what dogs may leave behind. But there is no legal accountability for adults bringing firearms and ammunition onto school grounds unless someone is injured, threatened, or commits a crime as a result.”

Currently, NH is one of 27 states with some form of "Child Access Protection" law. As you can see from the above link, our law focuses on "Negligent Firearms Storage" and provides for only a minor penalty (a maximum $1,000 fine) even in situations where someone is wounded or killed. As you might expect, other states go much farther and have laws on the books that provide genuine incentive for gun owners to put safety first. 

Bottom line: If we change nothing else in the next session of the legislature, this needs to change.

The good news? The parents we met didn't just ask great questions about our gun laws. They didn't just express outrage over something like this happening in their school. They’re not just writing Letters to Editor (although some of them did). And they won't be content to fade back into their lives or run up a victory flag knowing that a bill sponsored by Rep. McBeath and Rep. Jackie Cali Pitts would finally allow NH communities to ban firearms on school grounds.

Instead, they told us they were committed to doing whatever it takes to improve our laws to make their kids--and kids across the state--safer in a state where gun ownership is common and support for the 2nd Amendment is strong. Over the next few weeks, they'll be talking with other legislators, local leaders, police, school superintendents, teachers groups, and leaders in other communities across the state.

I'm so proud to be representing them.