Tennessee § 39-17-1311 - Carrying weapons on public parks, playgrounds, civic centers and other public recreational buildings and grounds.

§ 39-17-1311. Carrying weapons on public parks, playgrounds, civic centers and other public recreational buildings and grounds.

It is an offense for any person to possess or carry, whether openly or concealed, with the intent to go armed, any weapon prohibited by § 39-17-1302(a), not used solely for instructional, display or sanctioned ceremonial purposes, in or on the grounds of any public park, playground, civic center or other building facility, area or property owned, used or operated by any municipal, county or state government, or instrumentality thereof, for recreational purposes. Subsection (a) shall not apply to the following persons: Persons employed in the army, air force, navy, coast guard or marine service of the United States or any member of the Tennessee national guard when in discharge of their official duties and acting under orders requiring them to carry arms or weapons; Civil officers of the United States in the discharge of their official duties; Officers and soldiers of the militia and the national guard when called into actual service; Officers of the state, or of any county, city or town, charged with the enforcement of the laws of the state, in the discharge of their official duties; Any pupils who are members of the reserve officers training corps or pupils enrolled in a course of instruction or members of a club or team, and who are required to carry arms or weapons in the discharge of their official class or team duties; Any private police employed by the municipality, county, state or instrumentality thereof in the discharge of their duties; A registered security guard/officer, who meets the requirements of title 62, chapter 35, while in the performance of the officer's duties; Persons possessing a handgun, who are authorized to carry the handgun pursuant to § 39-17-1351 or § 39-17-1366, while within or on a public park, natural area, historic park, nature trail, campground, forest, greenway, waterway, or other similar public place that is owned or operated by the state, a county, a municipality, or instrumentality of the state, a county, or municipality; Subdivision (b)(1)(H)(i) shall not apply if the permit holder: Possessed a handgun in the immediate vicinity of property that was, at the time of possession, in use by any board of education, school, college or university board of trustees, regents, or directors for the administration of any public or private educational institution for the purpose of conducting an athletic event or other school-related activity on an athletic field, permanent or temporary, including but not limited to, a football or soccer field, tennis court, basketball court, track, running trail, Frisbee field, or similar multi-use field; and Knew or should have known the athletic activity or school-related activity described in subdivision (b)(1)(H)(ii)(a ) was taking place on the property; or Failed to take reasonable steps to leave the area of the athletic event or school-related activity after being informed of or becoming aware of its use; For purposes of subdivision (b)(1)(H)(ii)(a ) and (c ), property described in subdivision (b)(1)(H)(i) is “in use” only when one (1) or more students are physically present on the property for an activity a reasonable person knows or should know is an athletic event, or other school event or school-related activity. Property listed in subdivision (b)(1)(H)(i) is not in use solely because equipment, materials, supplies, or other property owned or used by a school is stored, maintained, or permitted to remain on the property; Persons possessing a handgun, who are authorized to carry the handgun pursuant to § 39-17-1351 or § 39-17-1366, while within or on property designated by the federal government as a national park, forest, preserve, historic park, military park, trail or recreation area, to the extent permitted by federal law; and Also, only to the extent a person strictly conforms the person's behavior to the requirements of one (1) of the following classifications: A person hunting during the lawful hunting season on lands owned by any municipality, county, state or instrumentality thereof and designated as open to hunting by law or by the appropriate official; A person possessing unloaded hunting weapons while traversing the grounds of any public recreational building or property for the purpose of gaining access to public or private lands open to hunting with the intent to hunt on the public or private lands unless the public recreational building or property is posted prohibiting entry; A person possessing guns or knives when conducting or attending “gun and knife shows” when the program has been approved by the administrator of the recreational building or property; A person entering the property for the sole purpose of delivering or picking up passengers and who does not remove any weapon from the vehicle or utilize it in any manner; or A person who possesses or carries a firearm for the purpose of sport or target shooting and sport or target shooting is permitted in the park or recreational area. At any time the person's behavior no longer strictly conforms to one (1) of the classifications in subdivision (b)(1), the person shall be subject to subsection (a). A violation of subsection (a) is a Class A misdemeanor. For the purposes of this section, a “greenway” means an open-space area following a natural or man-made linear feature designed to be used for recreation, transportation, conservation, and to link services and facilities. A greenway is a paved, gravel-covered, woodchip covered, or wood-covered path that connects one greenway entrance with another greenway entrance. In the event a greenway traverses a park that is owned or operated by a county, municipality or instrumentality thereof, the greenway shall be considered a portion of that park unless designated otherwise by the local legislative body. Except as provided in this part, the definition of a greenway in this section shall not be applicable to any other provision of law. Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 1; 1990, ch. 1029, § 9; 1993, ch. 480, §§ 1-3; 1996, ch. 1009, § 23; 2009, ch. 428, §§ 1, 2; 2010, ch. 1006, § 1; 2015, ch. 250, §§ 1, 2, 5; 2017, ch. 341, § 1; 2019, ch. 479, § 7. Compiler's Notes. Acts 2015, ch. 250, § 6 provided that any department of state government may, but is not required to, change, remove, or replace signs as a result of Sections 1 [which amended (b)(1)(H) of this section] or 4 of the act [which amended § 39-17-1309 ] prior to the time the signs are regularly scheduled to be changed, replaced, or removed or are required to be changed, replaced, or removed by any other law or due to destruction or theft; provided, that the general assembly may specifically provide funds for the purpose of removing or replacing signs in a general appropriations act. Amendments. The 2019 amendment, effective January 1, 2020, inserted “or § 39-17-1366 ” twice in (b)(1). Effective Dates. Acts 2019, ch. 479, § 22. January 1, 2020. Cross-References. Penalty for Class A misdemeanor, § 40-35-111 . Law Reviews. Weapons in the Workplace: The Effect of Tennessee's Concealed Weapons Statute on Employer Liability, 28 U. Mem. L. Rev. 281 (1997). Attorney General Opinions. Constitutionality § 26, OAG 96-080 (4/25/96). Authority of off duty officer to carry weapon on specific sites, OAG 99-024 (2/16/99). Possession of firearms on athletic fields used by schools. OAG 14-88, 2014 Tenn. AG LEXIS 88 (9/18/14). Possession of Firearms in Public Parks Owned by Counties and Municipalities. OAG 15-63, 2015 Tenn. AG LEXIS 63 (7/29/15). To the extent T.C.A. §§ 39-17-1309 and 39-17-1313 (2013) are in conflict, the provisions of 39-17-1313 (2013) take precedence over the conflicting provisions of § 39-17-1309 . After the 2014 amendments to T.C.A. § 39-17-1313, T.C.A. § 39-17-1313 still takes priority over prohibitions on gun storage in T.C.A. §§ 39-17-1309, 39-17-1311 , and 39-17-1359 . The phrase “or while in use by,” in the context of T.C.A. § 39-17-1309 as a whole, applies even when students or school personnel are not present on the property. Thus, gun possession would be prohibited on property used to store equipment or supplies by an educational institution specified in the statute. OAG 16-29, 2016 Tenn. AG LEXIS 29 (7/27/2016). T.C.A.§ 39-17-1311 (a) prohibits possession of those weapons listed in T.C.A. § 39-17-1302(a) and prohibits possession of other types of weapons on recreational property owned or operated by state, county, or municipal governments at any time the person’s conduct does not strictly conform to the requirements of T.C.A. § 39-17-1311 (b)(1). T.C.A. § 39-11-1311(b)(1)(H) authorizes holders of valid handgun carry permits to possess a handgun in the places specifically identified in the subsection. The statute is silent regarding the possession of rifles or shotguns in those places. Thus, T.C.A. § 39-17-1311(b)(1)(H) permits the holder of a valid handgun carry permit to possess only handguns in the areas, places, and facilities that are specifically described therein. Under T.C.A. § 39-17-1311(b)(1)(J) , civilians with or without a valid handgun carry permit may possess handguns, rifles, and shotguns on the grounds of a public park, playground, civic center, or other building facility, area or property owned, used, or operated by any state, county, or municipal government for recreational purposes, but only while the civilian is engaged in one of the specific activities set forth in that subsection and only as long as the civilian’s conduct strictly conforms to the statutorily circumscribed activity. In enacting T.C.A. §§ 39-17-1311 and 39-17-1314 , the legislature has preempted the entire field of regulation of the possession and use of firearms, including the possession and use of firearms in public parks, playgrounds, civic centers, buildings, facilities, areas, and other facilities and property owned by any state, county, or municipal government, or instrumentality thereof for recreational purposes. Thus, counties and municipalities may not prohibit or otherwise regulate possession or use of firearms in or on those properties in any manner that conflicts with state law. OAG 18-04, 2018 Tenn. AG LEXIS 4 (1/31/2018).