This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2004, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah Supreme Court today rejected the appeal of three Ogden
America Online employees who were fired four years ago for violating
the Internet company's firearms policy.
At issue was whether an employer's property rights trump the
constitutional right to bear arms when it came to the workers Paul
Carlson, Luke Hansen and Jason Melling transferring guns between
their vehicles in a parking lot outside their place of work.
The state's justices found that AOL was within its rights to
extend its policy to property under its control outside the workplace.
In so doing, the Utah Supreme Court upheld a 2nd District Court
ruling that endorsed the trio's terminations.
The three had sued AOL, claiming their dismissals were improper
because the company's anti-weapons policy, in application to the
parking lot, violated gun-possession rights guaranteed by the Utah
Constitution.