Gun ban in time for Folklife Festival?

After a shooting at last year's Northwest Folklife Festival left three people injured, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels vowed to outlaw guns in city buildings, parks and Seattle Center.

The proposal has languished for almost a year, with the state Attorney General's Office saying the mayor lacks the authority to prohibit guns on city property, a Second Amendment group threatening to sue and questions continuing as to what the policy would really accomplish.

With another Northwest Folklife approaching on Memorial Day weekend, a spokesman for Nickels said the mayor is moving ahead with an executive order this spring and is prepared to defend it in court.

Even if the order is not in place, the May 22-25 festival will be gun-free through the city's lease with festival organizers. Signs posted at the Seattle Center event will remind people not to bring guns, and security will be trained to take firearms away or ask people to leave, says Alex Fryer, a Nickels spokesman.

The new city order would apply even to people who have a state permit allowing them to carry a concealed weapon. Without a permit, it's already illegal in Washington to carry a concealed weapon in public.

Fryer said the city's parks are already safe, but he pointed out that the shooter at last year's Folklife Festival had a permit to carry his weapon.

"We believe that our parks and community centers and open spaces are safer without guns," Fryer said.

The new rule wouldn't have any criminal penalties. People caught with a weapon would be asked to surrender the weapon or leave city property. If they refuse, they could be cited for trespassing, Fryer said.

Alan Gottlieb, the founder of the Bellevue-based Second Amendment Foundation, said the new rule won't make parks any safer.

"Criminals who don't abide by the law to begin with aren't going to follow this law either," he said.

His organization plans to sue the city whenever the mayor issues his order. The group contends only the state has the authority to limit gun possession.

"This is really stupid, and it shows the fact that the mayor doesn't care about wasting taxpayer dollars to push his own agenda," Gottlieb said.

Fryer said the cost of a lawsuit would be worth it if the new policy saves even one life.

Washington state law says cities can't restrict firearms beyond state law. But Nickels says a 2006 state Supreme Court ruling — involving an event in Sequim which that city wanted to declare gun-free — clears the way for Seattle to restrict firearms on its own property.

Fryer said a number of cities around the state have banned firearms on some property.

Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin said the council is generally supportive of the proposal. "It seems clear to me that we should have the ability to regulate these weapons on our own property," he said.

Meanwhile, the city is training Folklife security workers in its new policy, and a spokeswoman for the festival said this year's will be "the safest ever."

Emily Heffter: 206-464-8246 or eheffter@seattletimes.com