MICHELLE WILLARD, Post Staff Writer
Posted: Tuesday, July 7, 2009 11:21 am

Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association has no position on cities allowing guns in parks, its executive director said Tuesday.

TSSAA Executive Director Bernard Childress said the organization never considered not holding Spring Fling, Tennessee’s high school state sports championships, in Murfreesboro because of a state law allowing guns in parks.

“We really don’t have a stance on guns in parks,” he said. “It’s none of our business. … We apologize for that getting out and people thinking we would not consider Murfreesboro (for Spring Fling).”

Childress added the new state law allowing carry-permit holders to bring handguns in state and local parks does not concern TSSAA and it is solely a local issue.

Last month Murfreesboro City Council deferred a decision on banning guns in parks, because of a new state law that allows guns in parks, which goes into effect Sept. 1. The law allows local governments to opt out and impose a gun ban in municipal parks.

Mayor Tommy Bragg was concerned at the time about how that would affect the city’s chances of playing host to Spring Fling in the future.

An unnamed TSSAA official informed Bragg that the organization is extending a zero tolerance policy on guns in schools to sporting events.

“Our thoughts were zero tolerance is part of the school day and our activities are an extension of the school day,” he said, adding TSSAA attorneys are looking into the issue with mixed results.

“(Because) zero tolerance does not apply to a city park because it’s not on (school) campus,” he said. “Even if we wanted to extend it, we don’t think we can.”

But if TSSAA does extend the zero tolerance policy to sporting events, Councilman Toby Gilley has come up with what he hopes is a compromise to keeping both the Spring Fling and the right to bear arms in municipal parks.

Taking a cue from other states with similar laws allowing carry-permit holders to bring handguns into state and local parks, Gilley wants to allow guns in parks, but not all the time.

“Other states have allowed guns in parks and facilities except when competitive activities are taking place,” he said, adding he will propose allowing permit holders to carry handguns into local parks “except at competitive sporting events.”

Gilley plans to suggest his compromise at the next council meeting where the issue is on the agenda.

Even though TSSAA currently has no policy on guns in parks, Childress thinks Gilley’s idea is a good one.

“That would be an excellent idea,” he said. “But again we are not taking any stance on any city opting out of taking guns into parks.”

Michelle Willard can be contacted at 615-869-0816 or mwillard@murfreesboropost.com.