The State Fair of Texas will be allowed to enforce its ban on guns when it opens a week from Friday. The fair announced the ban last month as a result of a shooting in the food court last year that injured three people.
The State Fair of Texas' rule does not allow license-to-carry holders to bring their guns in. Current police and retired officers are exempt.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton ordered the City of Dallas to rescind the ban, or his office would sue.
"Neither the City of Dallas nor the State Fair of Texas can infringe on Texans' right to self-defense. I warned 15 days ago that if they did not end their unlawful conduct, I would see them in court, and now I will," he wrote in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
The State Fair of Texas responded it is a 501(c)(3) charity and works independently of a government entity. The fair's lawyers compared themselves to other events where guns are banned, including rodeos in Austin, Houston and San Antonio.
At a hearing Thursday, lawyers for the attorney general's office argued some venues at Fair Park may be independent, but to reach them, people would have to pass through city property. They said the fair also works with Dallas and police from the City of Dallas and Dallas Area Rapid Transit.
Lawyers from the attorney general's office called just one witness, an investigator in the office, who said he had received several complaints since the rule was announced.
"An unlicensed gun holder committed a crime last year, and now this year, they punish license-holders by not allowing them to defend themselves," he said.
Lawyers for the fair also called one witness: President Mitch Glieber. Glieber said the State Fair of Texas is a registered non-profit and no City of Dallas officials or employees are on the fair's board.
He said the city also had no input or control over the fair's code of conduct, and the State Fair of Texas pays $1.75 million to use Fair Park each year along with $50,000 for marketing and 100% of costs associated with police and fire.
As soon as the two sides finished closing arguments, Judge Emily Tobolowsky said she was ruling against the request for a temporary injunction, allowing the rule to take effect.
"This is still pending litigation," the fair's lawyer, Robert Smith, told reporters after the ruling. "Obviously, the State Fair is very pleased with the judge's ruling. We think it's the right ruling."
"We're just ready to turn our attention to the State Fair of Texas," President Mitch Glieber said. "Eight days away from opening, we're ready to go, hoping we can keep our folks as safe as humanly possible. That's the goal."
The State Fair of Texas opens Friday, September 28.
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