St. Tammany Firearm Ordinance = Cant Shoot Anywhere in the Parish!?

[nola000]

Pretty much anybody who has ever fired a pistol at a target or a rifle at a deer St. Tammany Parish could go to jail, even at the various indoor shooting ranges...

ARTICLE IV FIREARMS

SEC. 15-207.00 Discharge Of Firearms Near Single/Multifamily Zoned Subdivision Developments
1. Prohibited: It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge a firearm within a one-thousand-foot perimeter zone of any single family residentially zoned subdivision or multifamily residentially zoned development measured as is hereinafter provided.

2. Definitions:

b. Single-family Residentially Zoned Subdivisions: Those portions or parcels of ground located in the unincorporated area of the Parish bearing the following zoning designations as identified on the Official Zoning Map of the Parish as follows:
1. A-1 Suburban
2. A-2 Suburban
3. A-3 Suburban
4. A-4 Single-Family Residential
5. A-1-A Residential Zoning District
6. A-2-A Residential Zoning District
7. A-3-A Residential Zoning District
8. A-4-A Residential Zoning District
9. A-5 Two-Family Residential District
10. A-6 Three and Four-Family Residential District
11. A-7 General Multiple-Family Residential District
12. A-8 Planned Multiple-Family Residential District
13. B-2 Planned Residential Districts
14. SA Suburban Agricultural
15. SI Suburban

c. Perimeter Area: That area surrounding the subdivisions as shall be
measured in a straight line from each of the subdivisions four (4) boundaries (i.e. front, rear and two (2) side lines) as shown on the subdivision plot thereof filed with the Parish and thence outward one thousand (1,000) feet.


Essentially the entire Parish is zoned numbers 1-15 AND you have to get 1,000 feet from the EDGE of the zoned plot. There is no exception for discharging firearms on your own property and its doesnt mention whether or not there has to be actual residences on the property for you to be in violation. Basically you could be in the middle of nowhere on Hwy. 36 and 434, for instance, and you could be arrested for discharging a firearm within 1000 feet of the woods because residential zoning is the default zoning for all land in the Parish.

There also isnt any allowance for hunting. I know 2 hunting clubs right off the top of my head that every hunter in that club is breaking the law every time they shoot on their hunting lease.

Click on this link below to see the Parish zoning map and then click on a Ward and it will take you to the map for that area. Take notice of ALL the yellow, green and orange. Cant shoot there. Now draw a 1,000 foot perimeter around all those areas. Cant shoot there either. Unbelievable...

http://www2.stpgov.org/pdf/zoningmap.pdf

Am I missing something?

 

[tallwalker]

Nope. This has been on the books for quite some time now. Came attached to that big rezoning push they had a few years back. I haven't heard of any enforcement efforts though. Probably because some farmer would likely chase them off with a shotgun. It's happened before.

 

[nola000]

How is this not the biggest deal in the Parish? The ordinance means you pretty much cant shoot at all in St. Tammany. There are beaucoup hunting leases here and they are all illegal. How has this not come up?

 

[DAVE_M]

If you have enough property to shoot, you are past 1000 feet from a subdivision.

 

[nola000]

If you have enough property to shoot, you are past 1000 feet from a subdivision.

No. Its 1,000 feet from the boundary of any residentially zoned subdivision. This doesnt mean houses, this is a zoning categorization. There are thousands of acres of woods that are "residentially zoned subdivisions".

This is either a major oversight or was done on purpose by some secret anti-gunners in the Parish chambers.

 

[charlie12]

Pretty bad in East Baton Rouge Parish too. I live in the country on 55 acres and I can't legally shoot a rifle or pistol.

Sec. 13:93. - Discharge of firearms.
(a)
Shooting of firearms within the city. It shall be unlawful to shoot or discharge a gun, pistol, revolver, rifle or other firearm within the city except in a regularly established rifle or pistol range built and operated under the proper safety precautions. The prohibition of this section shall not apply to members of the federal, state or municipal government authorized to carry such firearms, when acting within the scope of their authority.
(b)
Discharge of firearms in the parish; definitions; exceptions.
(1)
The discharge of any type pistol or rifle for any purpose by any person within one-half mile of any street, road or house in the parish is hereby prohibited.
(2)
The discharge of other types of firearms, including shotguns of any description which may be used for the explosion of cartridges or air gun, BB gun, gas-operated gun or spring gun, for any purpose by any person within five hundred (500) feet of any street, road or house in the parish is hereby prohibited.
(3)
The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed so as to prohibit any person from discharging a firearm in the defense of his person, family or property.
(Ord. No. 7421, § 1, 1-25-84)

 

[Tigerfish]

Never mind....

 

[nola000]

Never mind....

Why did you delete? I was just about to get enlightened.

Is there a difference in a plot being "subdivided" vs. just zoned?

Does the Parish make that distinction?

This is the catch-all that I see...

"b. Single-family Residentially Zoned Subdivisions: Those...parcels of ground...bearing the following zoning designations ..."

 

[WildBillKelso]

Okay, this is a disturbing problem that needs to be addressed. Why is it not being enforced if it is on the books? What actions have been and can be taken to resolve this issue? Is the LSA aware of this? Has anyone contacted the sheriff or elected officials for clarification? What can we do to bring a collective and organized voice to the table?
Perhaps we can work towards refining the law. Even with a backstop, I would not want someone shooting a 50 BMG in my typical suburban neighborhood. That does not mean I don't want someone with some land to hunt or target shoot with a firearm.

 

[DAVE_M]

No. Its 1,000 feet form the boundary of any residentially zoned subdivision. This doesnt mean houses, this is a zoning categorization. There are thousands of acres of woods that are "residentially zoned subdivisions".

This is either a major oversight or was done on purpose by some secret anti-gunners in the Parish chambers.

I tried looking on the zoning maps, but they are not working for me. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I don't quite agree. No one is going to enforce what you're saying.

 

[highstandard40]

My thoughts only. They want a written law on the books so that if there is ever a complaint they have an ordinance to cite when they write you up. This was tried here in Ascension Parish. We started grassroots opposition and defeated it, not to say that it won't be brought up here again. Law enforcement has to have a defined law to refer to when answering a complaint. Looks like this new St Tammany ordinance covers it all.

 

[nola000]

Im not calling out anybody specifically but some of the attitude in the comments seem to be, "who cares, they arent going to enforce it if youre in the woods". I tend to get this sentiment a lot from Louisianians. "Im white, old or middle-age, tuck my shirt in and wear a collared button-down so the police arent going to treat me like a criminal".

In the words of Suzanna Gratia Hupp, "People, thats not the point". As the ordinance is written right now you could be arrested for pretty much shooting anywhere no matter who you are or what you look like.

St. Tammany is a growing Parish and there are lots of areas that are semi-rural. Do you really want your freedom(arrest) to hinge on some LEOs opinion of where he thinks you should shoot? There are a lot of spots that could be left up to interpretation as to whether or not theyre safe. The law needs to be adjusted.

I called Washington Parish and they had absolutely no laws whatsoever pertaining to the discharge of firearms outside city limits(Franklinton and Bogalusa). So you can basically shoot anywhere you want to in Washington. Im not advocating such, as there are plenty of dense areas in St. Tammany that are outside city limits. Im thinking something along the lines of protection for people with X amount of acres. Maybe 10 or more, although State law prohibits Parishes from regulating firearm use on properties larger than 5 acres but Ive never seen this particular law ever brought up.

Okay, this is a disturbing problem that needs to be addressed. Why is it not being enforced if it is on the books? What actions have been and can be taken to resolve this issue? Is the LSA aware of this? Has anyone contacted the sheriff or elected officials for clarification? What can we do to bring a collective and organized voice to the table?
Perhaps we can work towards refining the law. Even with a backstop, I would not want someone shooting a 50 BMG in my typical suburban neighborhood. That does not mean I don't want someone with some land to hunt or target shoot with a firearm.

Finally, someone gets it!

I tried looking on the zoning maps, but they are not working for me. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I don't quite agree. No one is going to enforce what you're saying.

Make sure you can open .pdf files. Go to...
EDITED

http://www2.stpgov.org/pdf/zoningmap.pdf

IGNORE THE FOLLOWING 2 SENTENCEs.
Click on "Code of Ordinances" in the right-hand column. When the map opens in the .pdf viewer, click on any Ward you want to view.

My thoughts only. They want a written law on the books so that if there is ever a complaint they have an ordinance to cite when they write you up. This was tried here in Ascension Parish. We started grassroots opposition and defeated it, not to say that it won't be brought up here again. Law enforcement has to have a defined law to refer to when answering a complaint. Looks like this new St Tammany ordinance covers it all.

"Looks like this new St Tammany ordinance covers it all". Thats the problem. It really covers it all. Like the whole fukking Parish.

This needs to be fixed now or everybody is in violation. I dont care if youre in the Dixie Ranch Hunting Club with its hundreds of members and acres, you are in violation of the law in like 85% of your lease. Same for Abita Hunting Club.

 

[DAVE_M]

Make sure you can open .pdf files. Go to...
http://www.stpgov.org/i-want-to/2013-09-24-20-11-17/code-ordinances
Click on "Code of Ordinances" in the right-hand column. When the map opens in the .pdf viewer, click on any Ward you want to view.

That doesn't bring up any maps.

 

[nola000]

EDITED

IGNORE THE FOLLOWING
Open the link. Look on the right-hand side of the page. There is text that states "Code of Ordinances". Click on that. The text isnt highlighted or underlined. It looks like page text, not a link. This is bad web page design. Click on it anyway.

 

[DAVE_M]

Open the link. Look on the right-hand side of the page. There is text that states "Code of Ordinances". Click on that. The text isnt highlighted or underlined. It looks like page text, not a link. This is bad web page design. Click on it anyway.

Yes. That's what I'm clicking on... It's not a map

I've attached screenshots.

 

[nola000]

Oh, man. Im SO sorry. That was the link for the Parish ordinances. I apologize.

The link was correct in my OP. Im going to edit my other posts.

Here it is(same instructions)...

http://www2.stpgov.org/pdf/zoningmap.pdf

 

[DAVE_M]

Oh, man. Im SO sorry. That was the link for the Parish ordinances. I apologize.

The link was correct in my OP. Im going to edit my other posts.

Here it is(same instructions)...

http://www2.stpgov.org/pdf/zoningmap.pdf

I'm unsure where you found that .pdf, but I couldn't find it anywhere. Originally, I went through all the BS and it brought me to a layered Google Map, which is the one that I said I could not get to work.

http://www.stpgov.org/departments/planning

 

[nola000]

I'm unsure where you found that .pdf, but I couldn't find it anywhere. Originally, I went through all the BS and it brought me to a layered Google Map, which is the one that I said I could not get to work.

http://www.stpgov.org/departments/planning

Youre on the right track. From that webpage under the underlined sectioned titled "Planning & Zoning" in the main body of the webpage look at the link titled "Zoning Map (Not a survey. For planning purposes only)"

 

[DAVE_M]

Youre on the right track. From that webpage under the underlined sectioned titled "Planning & Zoning" in the main body of the webpage look at the link titled "Zoning Map (Not a survey. For planning purposes only)"

I have no idea how I didn't see that.

 

[WildBillKelso]

My thoughts only. They want a written law on the books so that if there is ever a complaint they have an ordinance to cite when they write you up.

I believe you might be correct in their intent. When laws are selectively enforced on "those people" and not the ones who are connected and in power, it opens the door to acts of gross injustice. All citizens are equal under the law. For it not to be tainted, the law must maintain fairness and impartiality. If the law is allowed to be unevenly applied, it strays from its main purpose as a social instrument for achieving the higher concept of justice.

Laws written overly broad like this one or with the intent of selective enforcement are indicative of lazy law makers. They need to be shown the light by concerned constituents.

I am up for participating in an effort to address this. I would not be the best to lead this as I am new to LA and am not familiar with local customs, mannerisms, local personalities etc... Anyone feel free to PM me to organize.