Colorado Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Students for Concealed Carry on Campus



by Logan Priess on March 6, 2012


In what is already proving to be a controversial decision, the Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that concealed weapons cannot be banned from University of Colorado campuses. The case, Regents of the University of Colorado v. Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, is interesting not only because of the strong opinions the issue evokes, but because of the specific meaning of the court’s decision.


Students for Concealed Carry (SCC) is a non-profit group of university students, faculty, and staff that was born following the infamous shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007. The group supports and fights for the right of law-abiding citizens with concealed carry permits to bring legal guns onto college campuses for the purpose of self defense. In many instances, the group finds itself fighting an uphill battle; 30 states have laws banning firearms from post-secondary schools, 19 states allow schools to choose their own firearm policies (which, with notable exceptions like Colorado State University and Blue Ridge Community College in Virginia amongst others, overwhelmingly lean toward complete bans), and only Utah requires public universities to allow concealed carry on their campuses.


Opponents, such as the Colorado Board of Regents and Students For Gun Free Schools (SFGFS), claim the presence of guns fostering an environment of fear and violence. On SFGFS’s website, they list their five arguments against concealed carry on campus:
“(1) Concealed handguns would detract from a healthy learning environment.
(2) More guns on campus would create additional risk for students.
(3) Shooters will not be deterred by concealed carry permit holders.
(4) Concealed carry permit holders are not always ‘law-abiding’ citizens.
(5) Concealed carry permit holders are not required to have any law enforcement training.”
SFGFS produced the following video explaining their “insufficient training” rationale.


SCC believes that the “gun-free” zones on many campuses allow for the perpetrations of violent crimes that could otherwise be prevented, and they point to 220 campuses in six states that allow campus carry and have not experienced any related injuries or deaths as proof of the responsibility of CPL holders and the safety of their goals. They offer counter-points to a vast array of opposition arguments, including those made by the SFGFS, on their website. One of the members of SCC explains some of their beliefs in the video below.



While SCC is applauding the Colorado Supreme Court (and likewise the Oregon Court of Appeals several months ago), the decision is not quite the ringing endorsement proponents of campus concealed carry would like. Just as the Oregon Court of Appeals did in September, the Colorado court ruled not that they were necessarily in favor of allowing concealed carry at universities, but that universities were not allowed to create laws regulating firearms as that power resided with the state’s legislative body. In fact, the court declined to even listen to SCC’s constitutional arguments, settling the matter strictly as a statutory one. As the court stated: We hold that the CCA’s [a bill that created statewide concealed carry standards] comprehensive statewide purpose, broad language, and narrow exclusions show that the General Assembly intended to divest the Board of Regents of its authority to regulate concealed handgun possession on campus.”


In other words, while this decision is, for now, a victory for those who support concealed carry on university campuses, many of these state laws could be amended to add post-secondary institutions onto concealed carry exception lists in the future. For example, concealed handguns are not allowed in these three areas under current Colorado law: “(1) into a place where the carrying of handguns is prohibited by federal law; (2) onto the real property “of a public elementary, middle, junior high, or high school” except in enumerated circumstances; and (3) into a public building at which security personnel and devices screen each entrant for weapons and subsequently the security personnel require any weapons to be left in their possession while the entrant is in the building.”


SCC, however, sees this as a sign of building momentum for their movement, and spokesman David Burnett had this to say, “We expect other colleges to see the handwriting on the wall and comply with the court’s ruling. If they refuse to adopt more reasonable policies, we may explore litigation against them as well.” The Board of Regents of the University of Colorado, on the other hand, states that firearm possession on campus is “inconsistent with the academic mission of the [University of Colorado] and, in fact, undermines it”; “threatens the tranquility of the educational environment in an intimidating way”; and “contributes in an offensive manner to an unacceptable climate of violence.”
Whether state law will eventually be amended to add Colorado universities to concealed carry exception lists has yet to be seen, and in the meantime, school shootings like the recent tragedy in Ohio will undoubtedly serve to force deeper divisions between the camps on either side of this issue. At the very least, for now, CPL holders at Colorado Universities can feel just a little more secure in their Second Amendment rights.