Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is appealing last week's decision by a district court to allow the State Fair of Texas to enforce its policy banning guns from the fairgrounds.
On Thursday, Dallas District Court Judge Emily Tobolowsky denied the injunction filed last month by Paxton's office, allowing the fair's policy to remain in place.
Paxton filed an appeal with the 15th Court of Appeals on Monday, asking for an emergency temporary injunction to stop the fair's policy from being enforced while the issue is settled in court. Paxton has asked for a ruling in the emergency injunction by Tuesday, Sept. 24, to give the Texas Supreme Court time to consider the issue if needed before the fair opens on Friday.
“The City of Dallas and the Texas State Fair are not above the law, and we are seeking emergency relief to uphold Texans’ Constitutionally-protected Second Amendment rights,” said Paxton in a statement. “The State Fair’s policy—by which law-abiding citizens could not defend themselves—does not make the environment safer, it merely gives an advantage to criminals looking for victims.”
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The state's attorney general has said the fair's policy to forbid anyone but active or retired law enforcement from carrying handguns into Fair Park violated state law. Paxton said the city of Dallas owns Fair Park and state law does not allow political subdivisions of the state, like the city of Dallas, to block licensed gun owners from carrying guns in places owned or leased by the government unless prohibited by law.
The attorney general's appeal said possible exclusions, such as events at the Cotton Bowl Stadium or vendors whose receipts are primarily from alcohol sales, where people would typically not be allowed to carry weapons, would not prevent someone from carrying a gun elsewhere on the fairgrounds.
A pivotal moment in court last week came when lawyers for the fair presented an opinion from Paxton filed in 2016 that allowed for this same scenario. The opinion supported a lessee being allowed to ban firearms on a property leased from a political subdivision. Last Tuesday, Paxton's office rescinded that opinion, and on Thursday, the attorneys noted that it was the only legal opinion Paxton had ever rescinded. In the appeal filed Monday, Paxton's office said the opinion was outdated and inapplicable and that since that opinion was issued, there have been several changes to the law regarding handguns.
After receving 12 complaints about the fair's policy between Aug. 8-10, Paxton's office warned the city of Dallas and the State Fair that he would sue if the policy wasn't changed
To read the filing, click here.
The State Fair of Texas opens Friday, Sept. 27, and runs through Oct. 20.
