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Changes in gun laws keep licensed weapons off campus
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:27 am
by HEMIzygote
Went to teach class this morning, grabbed my breakfast burrito, coke, and campus newspaper.....and this was on the front page:
http://media.www.dailytoreador.com/medi ... 8729.shtml
Red Raiders who literally like to get their guns up should beware of doing so on campus.
The Texas Legislature passed a new law June 15 prohibiting firearms in school parking lots and on school buses, even if the owner has a handgun license. The law took effect Sept. 1.
The new law states that a person commits an offense if, "in a manner intended to cause alarm or personal injury to another person or to damage school property, the person intentionally exhibits, uses or threatens to exhibit or use a firearm in or on any property, including a parking lot, parking garage, or other parking area, that is owned by a private or public school."
The law was designed to close a loophole in the existing version of the law, said state Rep. Diane Patrick, the author of the original bill.
"I wrote that because of an incident that happened at an Arlington school a few years ago," Patrick said. "The DA didn't prosecute because there was dispute about whether or not the person was within certain boundaries. This bill removed ambiguity regarding whether or not he was. It's very narrowly crafted to close that loophole."
Patrick said the Arlington School District, which is within her district and constituency, asked her to write House Bill 2112, which was the original proposition for amending the law, so district attorneys could have more latitude in prosecuting threatening persons near schools.
"I can assure you that the situation as it occurred in Arlington will not happen again," she said. "It's a situation that, fortunately, is rare and that is important to realize. The school district now has the means to be sure it is prosecuted. We worked very closely with Texas State Rifle Association to be sure it would provide a balance between constitutional rights and educational safety."
Gordon Hoffman, the deputy chief of the Texas Tech Police Department, said it is important to obey the laws because they are in place to prevent people from getting hurt, citing the incident that occurred at Virginia Tech last year.
"We realize there is a need for training to address those types of situations," he said. "With additional training and additional weapons we're able to better meet that challenge and know a little more about what we're doing. It's good to have the training."
Hoffman said he is ambivalent about people needing to have weapons on them at all times, even if it is legal because they have a license to carry firearms.
"Irresponsible people don't have any business with firearms," he said. "Most of the time I carry one off duty. It's not often you'll need it, but it's one of those things that's important to have when you do need it."
There is rarely an incident where a licensed firearm carrier uses his gun in an inappropriate manner, Hoffman said, because those who are license typically know better than to make mistakes with a loaded gun.
"You don't hear that much involving licensed people getting into stuff," he said. "Criminals, though, will carry what they want to anyhow, but the people who are truly licensed and trained in carrying one, well, this gives them the opportunity to feel like they're protected. I'm sure there are a lot of people carrying them. We have no idea."
Kenneth Mendenhall, a sophomore restaurant and hotel management major from Mansfield, said he owns a handgun but does not have a concealed handgun license.
He said he likes having his gun at home, but would not even consider taking it out of the house or to school.
"I can't imagine anybody taking a gun to school for any reason at all," he said. "People take that stuff seriously nowadays. There have been so many school shootings in the last few years, and there is absolutely no way you can justify having a gun while you're at school. I just don't know how people would even want to bring it with them to class."
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:37 am
by AEA
Well, this is news to me........
Can anyone actually "in the know" confirm that this Law (as described) is in effect?
As far as I know, school parking lots are fine for Texas CHL holders in Texas.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:40 am
by KBCraig
(Edit to clarify: I'm not referring to anyone here when I question reading comprehension, but to the reporter, editor, and even the bill's author if she thinks it bans all guns from school parking lots. Or perhaps she knows better, but is engaged in disinformation.)
Sheesh... whatever happened to reading comprehension?
From the article:
The Texas Legislature passed a new law June 15 prohibiting firearms in school parking lots and on school buses, even if the owner has a handgun license.
No, they did
not! Just read the very next sentence, which they offered as "proof":
The new law states that a person commits an offense if, "in a manner intended to cause alarm or personal injury to another person or to damage school property, the person intentionally exhibits, uses or threatens to exhibit or use a firearm in or on any property, including a parking lot, parking garage, or other parking area, that is owned by a private or public school."
There is nothing there about CHLs possessing firearms. "Intending to cause alarm or personal injury to another person or to damage school property" by "exhibit(ing), us(ing) or threaten(ing) to use a firearm" is already illegal, whether on school property or not.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:40 am
by seamusTX
The first sentence is wrong. An offense is committed only if the person displays the weapon or threatens to use it.
I guess this is obvious to everyone.
- Jim
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:42 am
by frankie_the_yankee
How did the editor allow this ridiculously inaccurate lead in?
"The Texas Legislature passed a new law June 15 prohibiting firearms in school parking lots and on school buses, even if the owner has a handgun license. The law took effect Sept. 1. "
What an example of bad reporting. The Texas Legislature did no such thing. As explained in the next paragraph, the new law merely bans
exhibiting, using or displaying a gun in a manner "intended to cause alarm or personal injury" or to damage school property - not mere possession.
So one can have a gun in their car in a parking lot just as before. All the new law did was "ban" some behaviors that were already illegal.
The original version as filed by Rep. Patrick
would have banned all guns in parking lots. But the TSRA took care of that in drafting an amended version.
What I think is funny is that the amended version is essentially a gutted version of the original, yet Patrick is still acting as though she actually
did something.
What a clown.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:44 am
by HEMIzygote
So who is emailing the author.....I am.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 10:44 am
by nitrogen
What's a handgun license?
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 11:08 am
by frankie_the_yankee
HEMIzygote wrote:So who is emailing the author.....I am.
I just posted a comment on the paper's website under the article.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 12:34 pm
by Mike1951
Remember back to the legislative session, when we were following this?
What is stated in the article was the original language and intent of the bill.
Many that were behind it think that is what they accomplished.
Late negotiations with the author effectively neutered the bill, resulting in the version that passed.
Posted: Tue Sep 25, 2007 1:18 pm
by Charles L. Cotton
Mike1951 wrote:Remember back to the legislative session, when we were following this?
What is stated in the article was the original language and intent of the bill.
Many that were behind it think that is what they accomplished.
Late negotiations with the author effectively neutered the bill, resulting in the version that passed.
Correct. It's amazing how many people don't read the fill in its as-passed form. If they had looked at the Captions, they would see how the bill changed. One of our members is an educator and he said one of the teachers' associations was touting the passage of HB2112 claiming it banned guns from all school property.
Chas.
Here are the Captions for HB2112:
HB2112 Captions wrote:
Introduced
Relating to banning handguns and certain other weapons from parking areas associated with schools or educational institutions; providing criminal penalties.
House Committee Report
Relating to the prosecution of an offense prohibiting the exhibition, use, or threatened exhibition or use of a firearm in or on school property or a school bus.
Engrossed
Relating to the prosecution of an offense prohibiting the exhibition, use, or threatened exhibition or use of a firearm in or on school property or a school bus.
Senate Committee Report
Relating to the prosecution of an offense prohibiting the exhibition, use, or threatened exhibition or use of a firearm in or on school property or a school bus.
Enrolled
Relating to the prosecution of an offense prohibiting the exhibition, use, or threatened exhibition or use of a firearm in or on school property or a school bus.