Student Senate talks guns
Wisconsin State Legislature may prohibit UW System universities from denying concealed firearms on campus; students to share feedback with Faculty Senate
The Wisconsin State Legislature is circulating a plan to amend the concealed carry law to allow the carry of firearms within university buildings. This would make the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, along with 26 other public higher education institutions in Wisconsin, unable to prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons anywhere on campus.
On July 8, 2011, Gov. Scott Walker signed 2011 Wisconsin Act 35 into law. Effective Nov. 1, 2011, it became legal for licensed individuals to be armed with a concealed weapon. Under the law, a person carrying the designated weapon would not violate any local disorderly conduct law. However, the law prohibits people from carrying those weapons into certain public buildings such as police stations or sheriff’s offices, prisons or jails, courthouses and schools.
On Oct. 12, 2015, State Rep. Jesse Kramer, R-Kewaskum, and State Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, began circulating a plan to allow concealed carries into University of Wisconsin System buildings, classrooms and stadiums—locations where they were defined as prohibited in the 2011 law. Their plan would null the prohibition of concealed carry into those areas that are currently designated as weapon-free zones.
The UW-Platteville Student Senate held a discussion on the matter at their Nov. 2 meeting, where Director Hannah Corcoran put together a short presentation and answered questions from guests and senate members.
Brittany Schmidt, senior media studies major and Student Senate director of marketing and engagement, said that her concern would be for students who are 21 or older and are living in the residence halls with legal concealed weapons. Corcoran said that she, as well as Bend and other senate members, have discussed the matter and said maybe residence halls could be a gray area because people are living there.
Another issue that arose during the meeting was the question of how many students at UW-Platteville actually have a concealed carry permit and what percentage of students would be enforcing their right to carry if the law were passed.
Vice President Joseph Sigwarth said that in order to obtain that information the Student Senate could conduct a student-wide survey and relay that information to the general student body once it is received.
According to the Oct. 27 Badger Herald, “Ray Cross, UW System president, and UW System chancellors said in a joint statement that they could not support the bill because of significant concerns and questions regarding its safety.”
Other states which now have provisions allowing concealed weapons on public campuses include Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Texas and Utah. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Utah is the only state to have a statute specifically naming public colleges and universities as public entities that do not have the authority to ban concealed carry.
According to the 2014 Department of Justice Concealed Carry Annual Report, the number of applications for concealed carry in Wisconsin amassed to 37,550 and the number of those that were approved and issued totaled 33,691.
The UW-Platteville Faculty Senate plans to hold a discussion covering the Resolution on Concealed Carry in Campus Buildings at 4 p.m. on Nov. 10 in the Nohr Gallery.
Myles Mayer | Nov 24, 2015 at 3:47 pm
I believe that students should not be allowed to have or carry a gun on campus because it could pose a potential threat to the college community.
Ryan Hagemann | Nov 20, 2015 at 10:51 am
I wouldn’t feel safe on campus, and would seriously consider leaving campus. University grounds are no place for guns, that’s what Columbine was for. it opened are eyes and this open carry bill on campus is trying to shut them again.
Carter Vosters | Nov 20, 2015 at 12:31 am
Why would a person be denied the right to defend themselves? The law is keeping firearms out of law abiding students hands. If someone were to want to bring harm to anyone in a university building a law would not stop them. I mean killing is against the law is it not? By allowing students with a concealed carry permit to bring their weapon into the university buildings could potentially aid in a bad situation. I have the right to be able to defend myself virtually everywhere in the United States, but when it comes to a place (Campus Buildings) that have been the run of the media for shootings I am not able to. By allowing concealed carry would also help deter potentially bad situations because now the criminal would know that there would be a swift and immediate reaction to his wrong doing. If a campus shooting were to happen it is often hard for the police to gain entry due to barricading, hostages, and the criminals having the drop on the officer. If there was someone who is concealed carrying on the inside the criminals would have no way of knowing who it was and how many there were. Not allowing concealed carry would be runner up to aiding the criminal and their wrong doing. It’s common sense.
Jacob Stukenberg | Nov 19, 2015 at 2:20 pm
I think it should be allowed, but within a very strict policy that no one can just pull out a knife or gun to show people they carry. I feel that if one must do it to feel safe, fine. But if you’re doing it just because you can, it shouldn’t be allowed.