Sussex County Sunday Shooting Restriction Update

Sussex County Board Chairman Eric Fly held his quarterly constituents meeting at the courthouse last night and did he get an ear full from gun owners and hunters in attendance. The meeting lasted for just over two hours, much of it dedicated to the noise ordinance. 

As background, on April 17th, the Board was able to slip through a new noise ordinance that all but bans target shooting on private property on Sundays.  It should be noted that Sussex is a very rural county with a few small towns scattered throughout.  It became even more clear during the meeting that this was driven by forces opposing Sunday Hunting:

HUNTER: "Sunday, all day, gunfire is not allowed?" FLY: "We don't think so. This is addressing a problem we think the GA has created."
— Mike Campbell (@itsthesoup) April 30, 2014

Chairman Fly also claimed that he had been told by Sunday Hunting lobbyists that the county would see an increase of memberships in hunt clubs:

FLY: "We were told (by lobbyists) that we would see huge increases in hunt club membership with the passage of Sunday Hunting."
— Mike Campbell (@itsthesoup) May 1, 2014

Not really sure why that was relevant as hunt clubs in that area hunt with dogs and that practice is not allowed for Sunday Hunting.  But the most damning statement against the new ordinance came from the Sheriff:

Sheriff Raymond Bell: There is no way for me to enforce this aspect of the noise ordinance. "Sees no way in hell for me to enforce this."
— Mike Campbell (@itsthesoup) May 1, 2014

The aspect to which the Sheriff is referring is section 5 which states:

...that discharge of any firearm between the hours of midnight and 10 p.m. on any Sunday in such a manner as to permit sound to be heard inside the confines of the dwelling unit, house or apartment of another person or as to be plainly audible at a distance of 200 feet or more from its source is not allowed.

Fly stated that he supported the ordinance as written but would discuss Section 5 and two other sections with the County Attorney.  VSSA will continue to monitor this and will let gun owners know if they need to plan to attend the May 15th Board meeting to show opposition and to let the Board know their action will be remembered at the next Board election if the ordinance is not repealed or changed to remove the Sunday shooting restrictions.

Sussex County Attorney Comments Infer Noise Ordinance Shooting Restrictions Aimed at Sunday Hunting

Yesterday this blog inferred that the new Sunday shooting restrictions in Sussex County's new noise ordinance was aimed at Sunday Hunting.  It appears from an article on the proposed ordinance in the April 9th Sussex Surry Dispatch (SSD) that at least one person may have had that in mind.  When asked by the reporter whether the shooting restrictions were a way for the County to get around the Sunday Hunting law, County Attorney Michael Packer said that he did not see the ordinance conflicting with it because state law governs hunting.  He then followed up with this comment:

The folks that feel they have a need to hunt on Sunday would have to figure out a way to do it in a way that does not bother other people, from a noise point-of-view," Packer commented.

Now, as a county attorney, he should know that the county does have some limited powers that allow them to place some restrictions on hunting, like, the kind of firearm that can be used.  But, his comment gives the hint that he helped craft an ordinance that would make it all but impossible to hunt on Sunday, unless of course people used a bow. The SSD article also mentioned that the Board had previously passed a resolution opposing Sunday hunting.

The last time the issue of shooting restrictions for noise came up in Sussex was 2012.  At that time the Board heard from gun owners that the proposed restrictions were not acceptable and the Board sent the proposal back to the Planning Commission.  It never came back up, until now, and the Board was able to slip it through with little notice from gun owners and gun rights groups on April 17th.  A backlash has now ensued.  Board Chairman Eric Fly is holding his quarterly constituents meeting tonight at 7 PM at the Sussex County Courthouse.  He is likely to get an earful.

Sussex County Board of Supervisors Effectively Ban Shooting on Private Property on Sundays

On April 17th, the Sussex County Board of Supervisors passed a new noise ordinance aimed at banning shooting on private property on Sundays.  The Sussex-Surry Dispatch has confirmed that Board Chairman Eric Fly will hold a meeting with gun owners on April 30th. 

NOISE ORDINANCE: A meeting between gun owners & Chairman Eric Fly scheduled for tomorrow evening. We will be there and have full coverage.
— Sussex-Surry Dspch. (@SSDispatch) April 29, 2014

The meeting will be held at the Sussex County Court House and will begin at 7 PM.  The part of the new ordinance affecting gun owners is:

New language added to the proposed new ordinance, covering using guns on Sunday, public to have input shortly. pic.twitter.com/V3AFoRxPJo
— Mike Campbell (@itsthesoup) April 17, 2014

This appears to be a direct attack at the new Sunday Hunting law passed this year by the Virginia General Assembly and in doing so stepped over the line by effectively banning all target shooting on private property, and almost assuredly killing any chances for new shooting ranges in the county.  Sussex has been a battleground for noise ordinances since 2009.  We finally put the issue to rest but now it appears opponents of Sunday hunting have reopened the issue.  If you live in Sussex County, please plan on attending the meeting tomorrow night.  If you can't attend, you can email the Chairman of the Board, Eric Fly, at seamcorp@gmail.com or call at 757-647-8190.