In this Youtube video, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba announced he “suspended” by “executive order” due to the COVID-19 pandemic the “open carry” law – a/k/a the Mississippi Constitution. https://youtu.be/YDKFdbaeLtQ
Mayor Lumumba cites Miss. Code section 45-7-17(7)(e) as his authority (timestamp 2:20). First off, that citation is wrong. There is no code section 45-7-17. He means Miss. Code § 45-17-7(e) which says “After proclamation of a civil emergency, the chief administrative officer may at his discretion, in the interest of public safety and welfare:*** (e) Issue such other orders as are necessary for the protection of life and property.”
Second, a mayor does not have authority to suspend state law. And a mayor definitely does not have authority to suspend THIS “law” because of Miss. Code § 45-9-51(1) which says, “no county or municipality may adopt any ordinance that restricts the possession, carrying, transportation, sale, transfer or ownership of firearms or ammunition or their components.” See also Miss. Code § 45-9-51(3)(1)(d) (“the provisions of this section shall not apply to the lawful possession of firearms, ammunition or components of firearms or ammunition”).
Third, and most importantly, no government official has the authority to “suspend” the Mississippi Constitution which provides in Article 3, Section 12: “The right of every citizen to keep and bear arms in defense of his home, person, or property, or in aid of the civil power when thereto legally summoned, shall not be called in question, but the Legislature may regulate or forbid carrying concealed weapons.”
Jackson (Hinds Co.) has tried this before and lost. It seems they need to be taught a lesson again. It isn’t even a close question.
https://courts.ms.gov/appellatecourts/docket/sendPDF.php?f=700_80585.pdf&c=78495&a=N&s=2
