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GoogleThe Dyer County Commission voted 15-4 Monday night to opt out of the new state law. The commission's decision affects the Dyer County Fairgrounds and the Community Development Park, which includes the Dixie Youth baseball complex.
As it is written, the state law allows persons with valid handgun carry permits to possess handguns in all parks, natural areas, campgrounds and similar public places. Local governments wishing to keep guns out of their parks have until Sept. 1 to opt out.
The county commission's Local Government Committee debated the opt-out resolution for nearly 30 minutes. Committee members were divided on the question and ultimately chose (on a vote of 2-3) not to recommend the resolution to the full county commission. Benny Spain and Jimmy Wells voted in favor of the resolution while John Uitendaal, David Agee and Steve Walker voted against it.
Agee argued that the resolution went too far. It prohibits guns in county-owned parks, period. He said he could understand if the county didn't want people to carry guns, but he thought it would be OK for people to leave their guns in their vehicles. He said that's acceptable at local schools.
County Attorney Mike Gauldin said the opt-out provision is an all-or-nothing proposition. Parking areas cannot be excluded. So, technically, the resolution approved Monday night makes it illegal to have a gun in the car if the car is in the park. But who would know that there is a gun in the car? Police have to have probable cause to search a person's vehicle, he said.
Agee still objected. He believed the opt-out resolution needed to be re-worded to say people couldn't carry guns on their bodies. He viewed the resolution as a violation of his Second Amendment right to bear arms.
"You can't vote to opt out of the Second Amendment," he said.
Gauldin replied: "But the Second Amendment doesn't authorize you to bring a gun into my house and this (park property) is your house."
The County Technical Advisory Service recommended the basic wording of the resolution. Gauldin said he would hesitate to deviate from the recommendation.
When the issue arose before the full county commission, Uitendaal emphasized that the resolution only affects persons who have handgun carry permits, not those who carry guns illegally. "It just applies to permit holders because all the other citizens are already prohibited from carrying guns," he said.
The tide began to turn as other commissioners began to verbally support the handgun ban.
Debbie Bradshaw Hart, who is active in the county fair board and Dixie Youth, said people don't need to take guns to the ball fields or the fairgrounds.
Jimmy Hester, a fair board member and past president, agreed. "We don't want guns at the fair," he said.
Terry McCreight, a law enforcement officer, said the police department patrols the parks and they don't need people carrying guns there. "I don't think it's a necessity to have a gun at a ball game or any public gathering," he said.
Uitendaal asked McCreight how many people with handgun carry permits had caused problems. McCreight said he had no statistics on that.
Uitendaal said that the percentage of Dyer County residents legally allowed to carry guns is small: 1,239 of the county's 37,600 residents.
Alan Burchfiel said current regulations allow people to carry a gun in church. "Some people say it can cause a problem, but sometimes it can save a life," he said.
Mike Thedford, who is not a county commissioner, weighed in on the debate. As the Dixie Youth 13- to 14-year-old boys team coach he told the county officials that guns are not needed at the ball field.
Voting for the opt-out resolution and a ban on guns in county parks were: Bill Cloar, Connie Apple Evans, John Flatt, Debbie Bradshaw Hart, Jimmy Hester, W.D. Hilliard, Milton Magee, Steve Moore, Terry McCreight, Tom Reasons, Kyle Reynolds, Al Seward, Benny Spain, Jimmy Wells and Adam Williams.
Voting against it were: David Agee, Alan Burchfiel, John Uitendaal and Steve Walker.
Larry Maupin was out of town and did not attend the meeting.
Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. If you feel that a comment is offensive, please
If you could look in the vehicles of some of the commissioners, do you think you would find firearms? I hope to GOD none of you ever have to have the help of a permit holder and as far as the police, that is a joke. David, Alan, John and Steve, thanks for standing up for our rights. At least if something happens, your conciences will be clear. Thanks for letting me speak my mind. That is what is wrong with Dyer county today. Nobody in office talks to the people to find out what they want. They just ask SOME of their friends whom they have swayed already.
Why not let the citizens vote whether there should be guns in parks and such? People with permits should not be limited where they can carry their guns. I carry mine for protections. I want the option to carry it. This is why I got the permit. You can not take my rights away. Let us vote whether we have the right to take it. GIVE us the vote.
I remember a camping trip in a state part about three years ago. We had a nice young couple with a young toddler that moved in next to us that afternoon. We left at about 8 o'clock that evening to go visit an observatory. We came back to camp a little late after being at the observatory, and noticed another couple had moved a tent into the spot next to the young couple that was already there. All four of them were sitting around the fire drinking and being a little loud so we asked them to keep it down so we could sleep. I was woke up at about 5 o'clock the next morning by a drunk guy trying to get into my tent. We convinced him that it wasn't his tent and he stumbled off in the direction of his tent. A few moments after that we heard a scream and then we heard another guy screaming at the top his lungs, "get out of my tent and get off of my wife....I have a 9mm pointed at your head and I will blow your %^#$*&^% head off!" The drunk guy had fell into the tent of the couple and their kid and the other guy who was obviously still "lit up" his self was getting ready to fire a 9mm pistol in my direction. By the time I had got up the guys were rushing to throw their stuff in the trunks of their cars and were headed out. I got the plate numbers for both cars and called the state police. I was informed later by the police that both guys had been arrested, one for drunk driving and the other for carrying a handgun in a state park.
I have several guns of my own so I am not against guns by any means. I do believe there are places where they do not belong though. State or city owned campgrounds and/or parks would be one of those places in my opinion. The salad bar at any restaurant would be another one of those places too.
If you feel like you have to carry a gun around at all times to protect yourself, what does that say about the place you have made for yourself to live?
they voted the correct way on this. our parks will be a lot safer now.
SO DO YOU BELIEVE THESE TWO GUYS WERE HGP HOLDERS .THIS IS WHERE IT CHANGES . PEOPLE WHO HAVE CRIMINAL RECORDS WILL CARRY A HANDGUN WITH OR WITHOUT A PERMIT AND YOU THE LEGAL GUN PERMIT HOLDER WILL BE LEFT STANDING WITH YOUR PANTS DOWN AS THE VICTIM OF THIS PERSONS ADENDA WITHOUT OPPURTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO DEFEND YOURSELF .SO WILL THIS ALSO EXCLUDE POLICEMEN FROM CARRING GUNS AT THE FAIR GROUNDS , POLICE MEN ALSO CARRY GUNS OFF DUTY , YOU ARE SETTING A DOUBLE STANDARD IF THIS IS ALLOWED .POLICE MEN HAVE BEEN INCARCERATED FOR USING HANDGUNS IN CASES WHERE NO CRIME WAS INVOVLED ,AND THE ONLY VICTIM WAS THE PERSON THE COP SHOT .THE NATIONAL GUARD ARMORY IS LOCATED IN THE SAME REGION A THE FAIR GROUNDS AND THEY HAVE GUN AND KNIFE SHOW HERE.WHERE IS THIS INVISIBLE WALL THAT SEPARATES THE TWO IN DISTANCE AND LOCATION .
This is just another example of the socialistic liberal democrats trying to control every aspect of life.
what does that say about the place you have made for yourself to live????????? i live in the U.S. just like you. i didn't invent crime or criminals. do you remember that guy who shot a bunch of people at mcdonalds one time not too long ago? not here , but at a social gathering place just the same. salad bar or whatever, nobody knows when or where these deranged people will strike. if your in a mcdonalds shooting massacre lying under a table watching a guy walk arround killing people and heading your way, i'll bet you wished someone had a gun permit and was going to take him out before he got to you. it may be a hypothetical situation, but it has happened and someone was that person under the table. this kind of stuff can happen anywhere.
The county commission will not give a rat's butt when I say they can take their park and fair and shove them up theirs, but I've had my say on the issue. That goes for the city as well. Their decision is not going to make one iota of difference about crime in the parks, in the schools, on the streets, in businesses, nor in private homes. All this restriction does is diminish the provisions of the 2nd Amendment and make it easier for anti-American politicans to ignore the Constitution in their insatiable quest for absolute power. I can see Civil War II looming on the horizon, and that's not treasonous talk...it's a simple inevitability.
Thank you County Commission for voting to keep guns out of our parks. I can only hope that the city votes this way as well.
SO WHAT ABOUT THE HGP HOLDERS THAT GO INTO MCDONALDS AND ALL THE OTHER FAMILY RESTARAUNTS WHERE CHILDREN ARE ?THESE KIDS GO HERE TO EAT AND HAVE A GOOD TIME WHAT SEPARATES THEM FROM THE PARKS AND FAIRGROUNDS ? CHILDREN ARE STILL PRESENT IN A PUBLIC AREA ,AND NO ONE IS POINTING A GUN AT THEM . IT IS NOT THE LEGAL HGP HOLDERS YOU SHOULD FEAR, THEY TOOK THE STEPS TO BE LEGAL .
i had the priviledge to attend last weeks committee and full county commissioners meetings. it was strange that several people in attendance were people who have a permit to carry a concealed weapon (some of which were commissioners themselves) yet, admonished the committee to not allow firearms at the fairgrounds or the baseball complex.
this permit to carry guns, as i understand it, is to carry a concealed firearm. there were numerous times during the two meetings that a phrase akin to "people carrying a pistol on their hips".
personally, i do not have a handgun, but just as i commented to one of the commissioners "if i had been in that classroom at dscc a couple years back, i would have hoped someone else had a gun too & hopefully, it wouldn't be in their car!"