Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act
For example, Congress declared LEOSA's purpose was to implement "national measures of uniformity and consistency" and allow officers to carry a concealed firearm "anywhere within the United States.
[7] The House of Representatives also defeated—and the Senate refused to consider—proposed amendments aimed at preserving local law enforcement agencies' discretion to regulate "the conditions under which their officers may carry firearms.
), or "(2) prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on any State or local government property, installation, building, base, or park"[1][10][11][12] Additionally, LEOSA does not override the federal Gun-Free School Zone Act (GFSZA) which prohibits carrying a firearm within 1,000 feet of elementary or secondary schools unless the individual possessing the firearm is licensed to do so by the State in which the school zone is located or a political subdivision of the State.
Although the GFSZA authorizes on-duty law enforcement officers to carry firearms in such circumstances, off-duty and retired law enforcement officers are still restricted from doing so unless they have a firearms license issued from the state in which they reside and then it is only good for the state in which they reside.
[13][14][15] However, when LEOSA was under consideration in the United States House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary, considerable representations were made to the effect that it would override agency-specific policies, leading to opposition to the Act from the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Executive Research Forum, and the United States Conference of Mayors, which was expressed as a dissenting view in the report of the Committee.
Congressman Bobby Scott (D-VA) proposed an amendment to the Bill to provide that it "shall not be construed to supersede or limit the rules, regulations, policies, or practices of any State or local law enforcement agency," but this amendment was opposed by the sponsors of the bill, and was rejected by the Committee 21-11, so the enacted law contains no such exception.
[16] In his dissent to the passage of LEOSA, Senator Edward M. Kennedy acknowledged that LEOSA overrides agency policy in accordance with United States Supreme Court precedent: "The bill removes the ability of police departments to enforce rules and policies on when and how their own officers can carry firearms.
In 2013, LEOSA was again amended by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2013, effective January 2, 2013, after President Obama signed Public Law 112-239 (H.R.
The definitions of "qualified active" and "qualified retired" law enforcement officer include the term "police officers" and expanded the powers of arrest requirement definition to include those who have or had the authority to "apprehend" suspects under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
"[18] On January 18, 2021, President Donald J. Trump issued Executive Order 13977 to expand LEOSA coverage for Judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement officers.
The Court took judicial notice of the various Pennsylvania statutes that authorize constables to carry firearms, make arrests, serve process, and enforce the law.
Upon applying LEOSA in terms of the known facts, the Court dismissed the charge against Rodriguez and held that he was covered by section 926B though constables are elected law enforcement officers and they lack government funding.
The court held that Booth was authorized to carry a firearm while acting as a Coast Guard boarding officer, adding, "Although the proof at the hearing indicates that the defendant engaged in a violation of rules, regulations and policies of the United States Coast Guard by possessing a handgun for which he had no license, these violations do not act to lessen the scope of LEOSA as it is applied in this instance."
[26] On May 22, 2008, In People v. Peterson out of the Twelfth Judicial Circuit, Will County, Ill., the defendant was indicted for the class 3 felony of Unlawful Use of a Weapon for knowingly possessing a modified rifle with a barrel less than 16 inches in length.
[27][28] On August 7, 2008, several off duty state and federal law enforcement officers, and a firefighter were carrying concealed firearms in a bar in South Dakota.
On March 26, 2018, an employee with the federal prison system was accused of brandishing a weapon and several other charges in the State of New Jersey.
According to the source the judge over the case did not allow the jury to know information regarding her status as a law enforcement officer and her protections under LEOSA.
“the Court finds that LEOSA preempts the Permit Scheme and prohibition on hollow point ammunition as-applied to Plaintiffs and QRLEOs who already have ‘identification’ ….
[T]he Court hereby declares that [those restrictions] violate[] the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution.” The Case is captioned Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association v.
Among those alleged to have participated such schemes include individuals such as Robert Mercer, Steven Seagal, and Dan Bilzerian, and police departments of communities like Hudspeth County, Texas, Oakley, Michigan and Lake Arthur, New Mexico, which shut down its police department in 2018 as a result of its practice of selling badges was exposed.
