At the behest of the City of Houston which was prompted by a prominent Texas gun rights group, the Houston Zoo has been forced to remove all "no guns" signage from its premises.

Attorney Edwin Walker with Texas Law Shield, a legal services firm for gun owners, sent a demand letter to the Houston Zoo and its corporate entity and the city's parks and recreation department on Sept. 3 asking that they take down all 30.06 (guns prohibited) signs at the zoo.

A 30.06 sign can be used by a business owner to prohibit a CHL holder from bringing a firearm into business. The signs refer to Texas Penal Code 30.06 which forbids CHL holders from bringing firearms into locales with 30.06 signs in plain sight at the entrance or a "conspicuous manner clearly visible to the public."

The Houston Zoo has reinstalled a series of signs that prohibit the carry of firearms into the gates of the family-friendly attraction almost three months after being forced to take them down at threat of legal action.

“After consultation with legal counsel, the Houston Zoo, Inc. has concluded that Texas government code does not prohibit HZI from lawfully posting signs that ban weapons from its premises because HZI is – at its core – an educational institution,” Wallace wrote Tuesday.

The zoo argues that being an educational institution exempts it from being forced to allow firearms within its gates.

Simmer down wrote:The Dallas Arboretum just took down their signs. It has to do with city owned property not being able to restrict licensed carry. We had the same silly debates about the risks of daffodils on patrons' safety.

DispositionMatrix wrote:

Simmer down wrote:The Dallas Arboretum just took down their signs. It has to do with city owned property not being able to restrict licensed carry. We had the same silly debates about the risks of daffodils on patrons' safety.

Give it time. They'll probably be going back up now that they know they can declare arboretum an educational institution.

MaxwellG wrote:From what I recall while down in Texas......Businesses, municipalities, etc can't just put up a sign that states 'No guns' you have to have a sign
that quotes the ordinance in it's entirety and properly or it's not considered legal.

dandad wrote:here in Misery, they just have to have a 14 x 11 sign with 1 inch letters, and if they catch you they can ask you to leave. If you dont, then they can call the cops. But I dont think its a crime to carry where its Posted not to. . Unless its under the heading of Govt, School, church, etc..

eelj wrote:Back when I was a kid the Como Park Zoo in St. Paul had this obnoxious little monkey that would sit on a swing and masturbate and throw his turds at people looking at him, if people were carrying back then I bet he would have been shot.

dandad wrote:here in Misery, they just have to have a 14 x 11 sign with 1 inch letters, and if they catch you they can ask you to leave. If you dont, then they can call the cops. But I dont think its a crime to carry where its Posted not to. . Unless its under the heading of Govt, School, church, etc..