Constitutional Carry has been the law of the land in Louisiana since July 4th, with one huge exception. The city of New Orleans had a preexisting ordinance requiring concealed carry permits that expires on August 1st, so the law won’t take effect in the state’s most populous city until Thursday.
Permitless carry hasn’t led to an explosion of crime in the weeks that it’s been in place across the state, and there’s no reason to believe that New Orleans will be any different once the city is forced to recognize the permitless carry law, but New Orleans officials are still claiming that the new law will pose a big threat to public safety.
As the 29th state to ratify permitless concealed carry, Louisiana is not an outlier. But as one of the only U.S. metro areas that allows 24-7 alcohol sales and citywide open containers, New Orleans does offer a backdrop uniquely rife with potential hazards, Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams and NOPD superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick have warned.
At Mary Jane’s Emporium, a Decatur Street smoke shop, employee Troy Stone said he’s seen his share of violence over the years, including a fatal stabbing in August 2023. People with guns haven’t been a problem in the past, he said. But he thinks that might change if there’s an influx of unpermitted, untrained gun owners in America’s booziest neighborhood.
“All we have is a machete in here,” he said, pulling the long, curved blade out from behind a cash register. “I might have to consider bringing a gun to work.”
As a reminder, it remains illegal to carry a firearm while consuming alcohol, so if you’re planning on boozing it up in the French Quarter and want to have a gun for personal safety, bring along a designated defensive gun user who can remain sober.
Keep in mind as well that some establishments in the Quarter are now starting to post “no guns allowed” signs, though not every store owner thinks that’s a good idea.
Artist Emilie Rhys said she doesn’t see much crime in her quiet stretch of Royal Street. But if someone came into her gallery with a gun, she would not be happy. Still, she chose not to hang a sign outside her door. “The sign sounds confrontational,” she said. “I don’t want that association.”
[Louisiana Shooting Association president Dan] Zelenka, too, will keep an eye on the firearm-free signs. “I don’t do business in places that don’t allow people with firearms to enter.”
The New Orleans Police Department is also moving forward with plans to designate its French Quarter substation as a vo-tech, which would curtail permitless carry within 1,000 feet of the building. Last week an NOPD spokesperson told the New Orleans Times-Picayune the agency is “still working through the permitting process and increasing our partnerships with other educational institutions to ensure transparency and that the proper legal process is followed,” but there’s been no official word from the city that the substation is now operating as a vocational-technical school.
Even when and if that designation comes down, concealed carry will still be allowed with a license in the area around the precinct building. Despite the efforts by city officials to turn the French Quarter and downtown New Orleans into a gigantic “gun-free zone”, Louisiana legislators have repeatedly (and rightfully) declined to do so.
Zelenka believes that most visitors and residents in the Quarter won’t even notice when permitless carry kicks in, and I suspect he’s correct. There are already people who are illegally carrying, and that isn’t likely to change going forward. More lawful gun owners may soon be able to carry, but those folks aren’t committing a lot of crimes as it is, and that’s not likely to change either. Permitless carry hasn’t posed an issue in the 28 other states where it’s already in place, it hasn’t been a problem in the rest of Louisiana over the past month, and it shouldn’t be a concern for New Orleans residents and visitors in the future.
