Weapons on College Campuses

The Idaho legislature is considering S.1381, a bill that would effectively strip public institutions of higher learning of authority to ban possession of firearms on campus. I have a couple of concerns about the bill.

I confess that I have long wondered where the University of Idaho and Boise State University get the authority to ban possession of firearms. Regardless of whether this is a good idea or not, it has been well established ever since In re Brickey (Ida. 1902) that the right to bear arms is constitutionally protected. In that case, the Idaho Supreme Court ruled that a Lewiston city ordinance that completely banned the carrying of deadly weapons was contrary to the Idaho Constitution, Art. I, sec. 11. The Court found that a ban on concealed carry might be constitutional, but not a complete ban. While you might want to argue the point, it appears that they also found that this right was protected by the Second Amendment as well.

I've long felt that prohibiting concealed weapon permit holders from being armed on campus was neither wise nor constitutional. Yes, I know your concern: drunken, irresponsible college students carrying guns to class, responding to bad grades with gunfire, etc. And yes, there are certainly times that I worry about this a bit.

However: as the Virginia Tech slaughter demonstrates, people that plan on murder tend not to be discouraged by rules against carrying guns on campus. If there were a recent tradition of college students losing their tempers and pulling out deadly weapons on campus (as there was in the early 19th century), I would wonder if the risk of this was too high to justify the advantages of victims being able to shoot back. But for the most part, when there is a problem with deadly weapons on college campuses, it is tragedies like Virginia Tech, or incidents like this person with a knife at Colorado University--where the rules against having deadly weapons on campus were ignored by the killer, and obeyed by the victims.

While sheriffs in Idaho have the discretion to issue concealed weapon permits to those who are under 18 to 21 (see sec. 11 of Idaho Code 18-3302), in practice, I don't think it is common. Certainly, few other states allow issuance to anyone under 21. What this means is that the vast majority of undergrads can't get permits to carry concealed. Some undergrads will be able to get permits, as will nearly all grad students, as well as faculty and staff.

Since about 5% of the population of Idaho has a concealed weapon permit, my guess is that not even 5% of those 21 and over college students have, or will get, concealed weapon permits. As a fraction of all students on campus, it is going to be 1-2% at most--and I would guess that relatively few of those with permits will carry to classes--except, perhaps, some female students taking night classes, who are understandably concerned about their safety on their way to the parking lot, or to a dorm room.

Where this bill would make the most positive difference is that some faculty and staff would probably carry concealed--and it is situations like this one where I find it most likely to make a difference: a woman is being stalked, and when the stalker comes for her at work at the University of Washington, he murders her and then commits suicide. Would Rebecca Griego have carried a gun to work, if it had been legal? I have no idea. But she should have had that option.

What makes me a bit uncomfortable about S.1381 is that it doesn't just require public universities and colleges to recognize concealed carry permits; it also prohibits them from doing anything about open carry. Open carry in an urban setting, while constitutionally protected in Idaho, is, to my way of thinking, bad manners. Lots of people aren't used to being around guns, and seeing one on a college campus isn't exactly going to make you any friends, nor will it, in the current climate of college, make gun rights activists any friends. This is an area where I can see colleges genuinely concerned about the atmosphere it would create.

Furthermore, the concealed carry permit has a background check that removes about 99.9% of all the people that are going to criminally misuse a gun. There is no permit required to carry a gun openly in Idaho, even in cities (although you will spend a lot of time talking to police officers about your bad manners, even if they can't arrest you). Especially since American society made the decision that we are seldom going to lock up mentally ill people until they kill someone--or get darned close to it--this creates some worrisome opportunities.

A fair number of homeless people (a which a significant minority are mentally ill, have substance abuse problems, or both) do carry knives with them for self-defense--and there is nothing particularly odd about doing so. (There might be more carrying guns, but guns are readily convertible into cash, and poor people shed guns pretty quickly for that reason.) If you live on the street, you may need a weapon for self-defense. And inevitably, some of these people are going to wander onto a public college campus, creating a rather difficult situation.

All in all, I think S.1381 would be easier to sell if it simply required public college and universities to recognize concealed weapon permits.

UPDATE: Nor is Idaho the only state considering such a change. A friend with Students for Concealed Carry on Campus provided me this list.

Arizona: SB1214: amending section 13-3102, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to weapons.

Georgia: HB 915 - Second Amendment Protection Act of 2008

Idaho: SENATE BILL NO. 1381

Kentucky: HB114 - Allows for carry in cars

Mississippi: House Bill 1286 - License to carry concealed weapon; authorize holders to carry weapon on college campuses.

South Carolina: South Carolina Lawmakers Consider Allowing Concealed Weapons on Campus

South Dakota: South Dakota House supports guns on college campuses
HB 1261

Virginia: HOUSE BILL NO. 424 - Faculty w/permits cannot be punished

Washington: SB 6860 - Prohibiting institutions of higher education from adopting rules concerning the possession of firearms.