(The Center Square) – Arizona Rep. Quang Nguyen, R-Prescott Valley, says a Sedona firearms ordinance could illegally overrun state law and potentially the Second Amendment.
“I urge the City of Sedona to review Ordinance 12.30.090 to ensure it complies with Arizona law,” Nguyen said in a statement. “It’s important that local ordinances do not infringe upon the constitutional rights of Arizonans or conflict with state statutes.”
Specifically, Nguyen is concerned that the language of “trails” and “open spaces areas” in the ordinance is too broad and goes beyond what state law allows in terms of allowing cities to have restrictions on having firearms in some public spaces, like “parks and preserves,” according to a news release.
“The Ordinance then exempts persons who possess a CCW permit. Yet since 2010, Arizona has allowed individuals who legally carry a weapon openly to also carry a concealed weapon without a permit, subject to some restrictions,” he wrote in a letter to Sedona Mayor Scott Jablow and the city council on Oct. 9.
“Further, the Ordinance purports to regulate places other than parks and preserves (i.e., trails and “open space areas”- a broad, vague, and undefined phrase),” he continued, asking the city to do a “legal analysis.” Nguyen leads the state House Judiciary Committee.
The Center Square reached out to the City of Sedona for comment, but it did not respond in time for publication. Sedona is a popular outdoor tourism hub for Arizonans and travelers from around the world.
