Guns on campus: What's next?

In 2012, a person wielding a crossbow went on the Casper (Wyoming) College campus and murdered his own father, a computer science professor, in front of the class. Previously, I had thought that Casper, which is about the same size as Coeur d'Alene, would be immune from such acts of violence. Now I am fully aware that underestimating any threat on a college campus puts everyone on campus at risk.

Allowing people to carry concealed on campus also has its risks. On balance, there is no way to predict whether our new state law will save or cost lives. Mass murder incidents could be less deadly or even deterred, while individual gun incidents on campuses could rise.

We can look at states like Utah and say there have been no mass shootings since they have allowed concealed carry on campus. However, there were no gun deaths on campuses that I know of before the law was enacted. Even if we look at the data on guns outside campuses, there remain conflicting results.

According to Change, a magazine of Higher Learning, "Two major national studies have used similar data to examine the relationship between gun ownership and degree of criminal activity - and they reached diametrically opposed conclusions" (Birnbaum, September 2013). Causes of crime are complex and making generalizations about what happens when you introduce more or fewer guns is difficult.

There is some fairly consistent research on individuals' gun attitudes. Kahan and Braham in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review (2003) suggest "individuals' positions on gun control derive from their cultural world views: individuals of an equalitarian or solidaristic orientation tend to support gun control; those of a hierarchical or individualist orientation to oppose it." Studies also show conservatives are more likely to be pro-gun, while many liberals seek more regulation. Males, more authoritarian oriented individuals, and even criminal justice majors have all been found to be more pro-gun than their counterparts.

Regardless of ideology, the legal environment for guns in America is changing. Some might say the Idaho Legislature did not go far enough.

University of Florida students are suing for the right to have guns in dorms. In an article to advise college administrators, Olsen admits: "If states continue to enact conflicting legislation concerning guns on campus, the U.S. Supreme Court will eventually have to intervene and issue a ruling on the limits, if any, of the Second Amendment as it applies to higher education (Chronicle of Higher Education, 6/13/2012). According to Reynolds, a University of Tennessee law professor, "Subsequent lower court cases, like Moore v. Madigan and Peruta v. San Diego, have held that the Second Amendment supports not only a right to keep a gun in one's home for self-protection, but also a right to carry a gun in public for self-defense" (USA Today, 3/2/2014). Thus, it likely will be the courts that decide this issue and gun rights could be expanded even beyond the new law.

So what should we do with our guns on campus? Should we worry about those with enhanced permits? Mustard (2003) notes that his transformation to accepting guns was in part determined by statistics that show "concealed weapons permit holders are extremely law abiding" (p. 1391). A four-year study of some 11,000 CCW holders in Multnomah County, (Portland, Ore.) found there was only one gun-related crime from permit holders. Enhanced permit holders must realize their responsibility and risks. Sulkowski and Lazarus (2011) consider one study which found that a gun holder is 4.5 times more likely to be a victim.

On a campus, not all concealed carry permit holders are going to respond simultaneously. Many may only respond in their own immediate areas when their own life is in danger, not scurry across campus to engage a perpetrator. Others, more confident, are likely to seek out any shooter. A highly trained veteran in one of my classes said he would respond to any campus shooting. We are lucky to have such heroes enrolled in Idaho campuses. We cannot know if this is the way to reduce school shootings, but certainly other states are watching.

There are many myths about guns on campus promoted by the likes of faculty such as Biology Professor Hampikian at BSU, who wrote a satirical article entitled: "When may I shoot a student?" published in the New York Times. Such writing sensationalizes misconceptions about concealed carry permits and gun use. Concealed means concealed; you will never see a weapon and you should never know who is carrying. Only if a life is in danger can a gun be produced. In my decades as a student or a faculty member, I have never even seen a simple assault in any classroom. This should not change because some people may be carrying guns. Another myth is that colleges must now allow open carry of firearms by anyone. However, unless the courts rule otherwise, colleges can still legally ban open carry on campus.

It is not a myth that most students do not want guns on campus. College surveys normally find that at least 70 percent of students do not want guns. I would expect the rate at NIC to be slightly less. Still, many students do not understand the law as to who can carry, where they can carry and what kind of training to carry is required. Dorms and any gathering place over 1,000 people still have gun bans and students under the age of 21 will not be allowed to carry. Thus, I would estimate that there would be anywhere from 0-3 people carrying a concealed weapon in any given classroom. Assuming no incidents, over time, everyone on campus should become more comfortable with the new law.

Some critics of the new law are correct that NIC will have to spend more money on campus security. However, this is badly needed anyway and even those on the Board of Trustees basically agreed to examine ways that campus security could be armed even before the new law was passed.

I have heard it mentioned that some faculty may resign or some students may not enroll in Idaho colleges because of this law. With or without guns on campus, the murder and crime rate at schools and universities is far below the general crime rates. Whether SB 1254 will save or costs lives is unknown but we can hope that this is a law that we can live with.

Dr. Richard Tanksley is a Political Science Instructor at NIC. His views are his own and not those of NIC. He is coauthor of: "A Comparative Study of Gun Attitudes among Chinese and U.S. Students" which is scheduled to be presented at the Western Social Science Association meeting this April.