Utah Lawmaker Proposes Young Adult Open Carry Measure

We’ve chronicled in the past how young adult gun owners ages 18 to 20 are often deprived of their rights, despite the fact that Second Amendment protections apply to all lawful American adults.

Now, a Utah lawmaker is trying to make sure young adult gun owners in the Beehive State can practice the same rights as those who are 21 years old and older.

Utah Republican Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, the House majority whip, is introducing a measure that would allow 18- to 20-year-olds to openly carry firearms in most public spaces in Utah.

According to a report at KSL.com, the bill began as an effort to recodify outdated or convoluted sections of statute but evolved into a broader effort to address gun rights in the state.

“The goal of the bill is to clarify firearm law in the state of Utah because citizens should know their rights,” Lisonbee told KSL.com. “This process subsequently raised several policy questions; and when those policy questions came up, I attempted to align (the proposed bill) with legislative intent that protects Utahns in exercising their fundamental Second Amendment rights.”

Utah has passed a constitutional, or “permitless” carry law, which did away with the need for obtaining a permit or paying a fee to the government to practice a basic constitutionally protected right. However, state law currently stipulates that only gun owners 21 or over can openly carry a firearm for self-defense purposes. Lisonbee pointed to the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen as her reason for addressing the situation.

“We’re seeing that, especially under Bruen, otherwise law-abiding adults being differentiated by age as the sole basis is unconstitutional,” she said. “So, we are simply saying 18 instead of 21. We want to be mindful that when you’re 18, you can sign up to serve in the military, and we treat—under the law—18-year-olds as adults in many other instances.”

In fact, Lisonbee has a good point. The 8^th Circuit Court ruled back in July that a Minnesota law barring 18- to 20-year-old gun owners for carrying a concealed firearm was unconstitutional. A district court handed down a similar ruling in Pennsylvania.

The new proposal states: “An individual 18 years old or older may carry a firearm, that the individual may otherwise lawfully carry, in an open manner: in a vehicle in which the individual is lawfully present; on a public street; or in any other place not prohibited by, or pursuant to, state statute or federal law.”

Incidentally, the measure would also prevent landlords from enforcing lease agreements that bar firearms from the premises. While current state law bars landlords from preventing their tenants having firearms in their rented residences, Lisonbee says her new proposal further clarifies the matter.

“The current law is very clear, we think, but we’re clarifying it even further as there has been some misconception amongst the public,” she said. “What the bill clarifies is that property owners cannot restrict an individual from lawfully possessing a firearm at their residence.”