Do you want your zones gun-free or sanity-free?

It happens each year. Lawmakers who tried last legislative session to abolish “gun-free” zones and either misfired, fired blanks or simply shot themselves in the feet, reload their legislative weapons for another shot.

There is nothing they desire more than pleasing the gun lobby.

This time, we have Senate Bill 1664, which says in part that a “government entity that establishes a gun-free zone is liable for any damages claimed by a person who is harmed by criminal conduct in the gun-free zone if a reasonable person would believe that possession of a firearm could have helped the person defend against criminal conduct.”

The bill, proposed by a number of Republican lawmakers, does not define what it means by a “reasonable person.”

However, before we even get into SB1664 it might first be wise to ask ourselves if their assumption about average people with weapons is, in any way, reasonable.

These lawmakers seem to believe it is reasonable to assume that an average person carrying a weapon, when thrust suddenly into a situation of grave danger, high tension and, in all likelihood, mass confusion, will act in the cool, calm manner of an individual trained extensively in dealing with such situations. Like, for example, law enforcement officers.

I’d guess that reasonable people would disagree with that premise.

Reasonable people would more likely expect an average person with a weapon to perform less coolly or calmly than, say, a police officer.

Which gives an average person what percentage of success?

Well, those who study such things don’t put what they call the “hit rates” very high, even for trained professionals. The people who know what they’re doing still miss their intended targets ... a lot.

Back in 2006, Arizona State University criminologist Michael D. White conducted a study of several jurisdictions and concluded, “Hit rates vary notably across police agencies but rarely exceed 50 percent. The research examining shooter accuracy overwhelmingly debunks the Hollywood myth of police officers as sharp shooters who can wing suspects in the shoulder or leg or shoot weapons out of suspects’ hands.”

A more recent study looked at 149 officer-involved shooting incidents that occurred over a number of years in Dallas. The hit rates fluctuated a bit from year to year but hovered, again, around 50 percent.

Some officers were stellar in their accuracy. Researchers also found, however, that of 354 rounds fired at suspects, half “were entirely inaccurate.”

That is a lot of stray rounds.

It seems reasonable to me that the hit rates would drop considerably below 50% for an average person in a similar high-stress, high-chaos situation.

And where would those stray rounds go?

In the past I spoke a number of times with a woman named Dolores Heil, whose 25-year-old daughter Susan Dina was shot and killed while in the Valley

to attend a wedding. Susan was lounging by the pool of a Mesa motel when an average person with a gun exited a nearby bar and took a shot at a couple of guys who’d caused a disturbance. He missed the men and hit Susan.

There was nothing reasonable about what happened.

When it comes to gun-free zones, however, it might be best to follow the example of those who deal with weapons and who have an unquestioned belief in the most expansive Second Amendment rights.

Later this month, Crossroads of the

West will host a large gun show at the Arizona State Fairgrounds.

The company stages numerous large shows like this in several states. Thousands of firearms enthusiasts attend. These are men and women who know more about weapons than just about anyone. Seasoned sportsmen and women, shooters well-studied and practiced in proper maintenance and handling of firearms. People who are keenly aware of safety rules.

And yet these gun shows are, essentially, gun-free zones.

For patrons who choose to bring weapons to a gun show the Crossroads website states: “Please be sure the gun is unloaded before you enter the building, and take it to our gun check table at the show entry for verification. They will clear it with a nylon tie and disable the action. No loaded firearms and no loaded magazines are permitted in any Crossroads gun show. Your personal safety is our number one priority while you are at the show.”

I don’t know about you but, to me, that sounds very … reasonable.