Moscow may ban guns on city land

MOSCOW, Idaho – Four people died and three were wounded last May as a shooting rampage unfolded at the Latah County Courthouse here, and now the mayor wants to know whether Moscow can ban guns on city property.

Mayor Nancy Chaney has asked for a legal opinion from the state attorney general’s office on whether the city has the authority to ban both concealed and exposed weapons in such public areas.

The request, made in mid-July, comes after Jason Hamilton on May 19 killed his wife at their home before driving to the courthouse and firing some 200 gunshots into a sheriff’s dispatch center. There he killed one law enforcement officer and wounded two others, then wounded a good Samaritan who had armed himself and run to help.

Hamilton then went to the nearby First Presbyterian Church, fatally shooting a caretaker. Hamilton fired as many as 80 rounds inside the church before taking his own life.

“Most of the time our town is very tranquil,” City Councilman