The Gun-Free School Zones Act [18 U.S.C. Sect. 921(a)(25, 26), 922(q)(1)], part of the Crime Control Act of 1990 (PL 101-647), made it unlawful for anyone to knowingly possess firearms in school zones. The law was quite strict. For instance, it made it illegal to carry unloaded firearms in an unlocked suitcase on public sidewalks in front of one's residence, if that part of the sidewalk is within one thousand feet of the grounds of any public or private school—whether or not school is in session. Gun control advocates felt the legislation was needed to send a message to teachers and law enforcement personnel that the federal government was behind them in the effort to get guns out of schools.
Gun rights advocates condemned this attempt to restrict their rights. The act was challenged as unconstitutional and was struck down by the Supreme Court in April 1995 in United States v. Lopez (514 U.S. 549). The Supreme Court upheld state and local authority in the regulation of schools and ruled that Congress exceeded its power in passing the original act. In response to the Court's ruling, Congress approved a slightly revised version of the Gun-Free School Zones Act in 1996 (PL 104-208). The focus of the act was changed from possessing a firearm in a school zone to possessing a firearm "that has moved in or that otherwise affects interstate or foreign commerce" in a school zone.
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