State v. Gradishar, Minn.Ct.App., 6/2/2009. Mr. Gradishar owns and manages a bar in Duluth. One night at the bar - it must have been a slow night - Mr. Gradishar just happened to mention to one of his (apparently disgruntled) employees, an off duty cop, that he had his gun in his pocket, for which he had a permit. The cop asked Mr. Gradishar if he'd been drinking; when Mr. Gradishar admitted that he had, the cop arrested him for carrying a pistol in a "public place" while under the influence of alcohol.
Such behavior happens to violate Minn.Stat. 624.7142, which says:
A person may not carry a pistol on or about the person’s clothes or person in a public place . . . when the person is under the influence of alcohol.
The appellate court decides that a "public place" for purposes of this statute is:
generally an indoor or outdoor area, whether privately or publicly owned, to which the public have access by right or by invitation, expressed or implied, whether by payment of money or not.
This definition ignores a perfectly good definition found elsewhere in Chapter 624 (emphasis added):
"Public place" means property owned, leased, or controlled by a governmental unit and private property that is regularly and frequently open to or made available for use by the public in sufficient numbers to give clear notice of the property's current dedication to public use but does not include: a person's dwelling house or premises, the place of business owned or managed by the person, or land possessed by the person; a gun show, gun shop, or hunting or target shooting facility; or the woods, fields, or waters of this state where the person is present lawfully for the purpose of hunting or target shooting or other lawful activity involving firearms.
Now, this statutory definition is in a section that prohibits the carrying of BB guns, rifles, or shotguns, Minn.Stat. 624.7181. This section, curiously, does not prohibit Mr. Gradishar from carrying a shotgun about the bar while under the influence.
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