By
The Associated Press
TUCSON - A judge said he will decide this week whether the city is violating state law by requiring background checks for all gun sales at the Tucson Convention Center.
An attorney hired by the National Rifle Association argued last week before Superior Court Judge Kenneth Lee that the city council had no authority to require the background checks because Arizona law prohibits cities and towns from enacting firearms laws.
"The state law is very broad, and the reason it was passed by the Legislature was their desire to make laws uniform throughout the state," said attorney Michael Rusing, who represents gun-show organizer Patrick McMann of Phoenix.
Rusing wants to block the city's enforcement of the ordinance and allow McMann to proceed with the private sale of firearms at the convention center. McMann has held gun shows at the convention center for years.
Assistant City Attorney David Deibel argued that the council merely set policy for how business should be conducted at the city-run convention center and didn't defy state law.
"It is acting in an executive capacity telling one of its divisions how to run its business," said Deibel.
The city council voted in February to require private firearm vendors to conduct criminal background checks on customers who buy firearms at gun shows at the convention center.
