Smyrna votes to allow guns in parks following court decision ruling

What This Story Is About

• Smyrna town council voted to update their charter to allow guns in public parks following a state court ruling.

Why It Matters

• Previous laws prohibited the presence of guns in public parks, but following Hughes v. State in Gibson County, the ban was ruled unconstitutional.

What Happens Next

• The changes also include allowing hunting within city limits, following guidance from a state law passed this year.

For Context

• Smyrna is one of the first Midstate cities to adopt the changes posed by the new state law and the court ruling.

SMYRNA, Tenn. (WSMV) - Smyrna’s city council approved a rule change Tuesday night that will now allow guns to be brought into public parks, making it one of the first Midstate cities to adopt the new standard following a court ruling earlier this year.

The council made the change to align with Hughes v. State, decided in Gibson County Chancery Court, which found outright bans on guns in parks unconstitutional. City leaders said the update also reflects new state laws surrounding the issue.

“This is the item that has been reviewed several times for you guys,” a city official said. “It aligns our current municipal code with some recent changes in Tennessee law in relation to firearms within the town limit.”

“The first is there was a Supreme Court tribunal that essentially invalidated and rendered unenforceable our ban on firearms within the park, so we’re just cleaning up that language to align it with state law,” he said.

Residents divided on the change

Public comment at Tuesday’s meeting showed residents largely torn. Teresa Colbert, who visits the park with her granddaughter, said the change brings new concerns — but also acknowledged a personal experience that left her conflicted.

“Honestly, I’m conflicted about it,” Colbert said. “I’m not a gun owner myself, but my grown sons are, and they carry them for protection. So, I don’t know what to say other than it kind of makes me feel a little bit safer, I guess.”

Colbert described a recent visit to Sharp Springs park where she and her granddaughter encountered a person near a restroom that made them uncomfortable enough to turn around.

“Would I have felt a little safer if maybe I had had one?” she said. “I even talked to my daughter about that.”

She said the new rule will change how she approaches park visits.

“I think it’s going to make me a little more hypervigilant,” Colbert said. “Because now I’m going to be looking around going, I wonder who is and who isn’t.”

Colbert said she does not want to be seen as opposed to gun rights, but stressed the need for responsibility.

“I don’t want to stand here and say that I am against guns because I understand that is one of the rights built into the Constitution to bear arms,” she said. “But I also feel like we have to temper that with some responsibility.”

One resident who spoke during public comment said he supported the change, arguing that gun bans only disadvantage law-abiding citizens.

“Bad people say, oh, there’s a law against having firearms in a public park — well, but I’m a bad person, I’ll do what I want,” said Dan Epright. “So you just disadvantage the good people. I think this is really wonderful.”

Calls for accountability and background checks

Others who are not necessarily opposed to allowing guns in parks said they want more safeguards to ensure only responsible gun owners are carrying.

Claudia Belden said she believes in the Second Amendment but opposes constitutional carry and wants greater accountability.

“I got my gun carry permit. I went to a class… I practiced. I think we need that kind of accountability,” Belden said.

Colbert echoed the call for stronger vetting.

“It would make me feel a lot better if they did better… stringent and thorough background checks,” she said.

What the new rule does and does not allow

Smyrna’s town charter will now follow the court ruling permitting guns in parks. However, the HALO law remains in effect, making it illegal to fire a gun within 500 feet of a school.

Hunting now permitted within city limits

In a separate action, the council also updated a local ordinance to reflect a state law that took effect July 1, permitting hunting within Smyrna city limits. A city official explained the council had limited options under state preemption law.

“We are preempted out of even making that decision,” he said. “The legislature has preempted us from even making that illegal.”

He said the only action available to the council was to opt into a 500-foot HALO buffer around schools — and that failing to vote would have left schools without that protection.

“If we didn’t act, then we would, by virtue of that, opt out and would not have that halo around schools,” he said.

Hunting that is otherwise lawful under Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency regulations remains subject to those rules, including prohibitions on shooting over roadways and restrictions tied to season and weapon type. The city retains authority to prosecute anyone who discharges a firearm in a reckless or dangerous manner under existing laws.

Belden said she was uncomfortable with the hunting provision.

“I’m uncomfortable with people being able to hunt inside our corporate limits,” she said. “There’s just too much of an opportunity for an accident.”