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7 <br /> Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> Page 6 <br /> November 11, 1993 <br /> significant limitation on the County's ability to regulate <br /> firearms when compared to a North Carolina town. <br /> In 1976 our law firm was asked to draft an ordinance which <br /> prohibited the discharge of firearms within the County to the <br /> extent authorized by G.S. S 153A-129 discussed above. A copy of <br /> that ordinance is enclosed. In drafting it we stayed within the <br /> limitations of G.S. S 153A-129 and attempted to avoid the North <br /> Carolina constitutional "right of the people to keep and bear <br /> arms. " The enclosed ordinance was not adopted by the Board of <br /> County Commissioners in 1976 and, when the issue of firearm <br /> regulation was revisited in 1989, principally in the context of <br /> hunting problems, the Board also declined to regulate firearms. <br /> I do not present the enclosed ordinance for your consideration <br /> but rather as an historic document. If the Board of <br /> Commissioners is inclined to want to regulate firearms, I will <br /> want to rethink and perhaps "retool" the ordinance to be more <br /> specific particularly in what it prohibits . Also, the 1976 draft <br /> ordinance does not deal at all with pellet guns, with the display <br /> of guns or with "weapon[s] or instrumentalit[ies] of mass death <br /> and destruction. " This is so because the Board, in the past, had <br /> not focused on these matters. <br /> For your further information, I have enclosed a copy of <br /> Durham County's proposed firearm and air gun regulations. This <br /> ordinance will prohibit the discharge of firearms and air guns in <br /> or near "predominantly residential areas" and create a "negligent <br /> discharge of firearms" violation in the areas that are not <br /> "predominantly residential. " <br /> I hope that the information contained in this letter and in <br /> the enclosures provides you with enough material to aid you in <br /> discussions about firearm regulation and helps you determine <br /> whether there is a need for such regulations and, if so, what <br /> they should be. I 'll be glad to develop a draft ordinance for <br /> your consideration and at your direction. <br /> Very truly yours, <br /> �fre r edhill <br /> GEG/lsg <br /> Enclosures <br /> xc: John M. Link, Jr. <br />