BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Hundreds swarmed the Statehouse steps waving signs in protest of a bill that would allow firearms on Idaho college campuses.
Students and professors spoke out against the bill - to allow holders of concealed weapons permits to arm themselves when they’re on university property - at the Thursday rally, through a light drizzle.
Many said having allowing concealed carry permit holders to tote guns to class and around campus would disrupt a learning environment and force schools to implement costly security measures.
The legislation passed the Senate 25-10 earlier this month. It’s scheduled for an 8 a.m. hearing Friday in the House.
Ron Enright, a retired state employee who attended Thursday’s rally, said he’s an avid hunter and shooter but doesn’t think it’s a wise idea to allow firearms in the college environment.
“I consider myself a responsible gun owner,” he said. “I believe guns have their place, but I don’t think campus is one of them.”
Though concealed-carry permit holders get some training, Enright doesn’t think it’s enough to make them a reliable line of defense in the event of a campus shooter, as some proponents of the bill argue.
“I don’t think people with only eight hours of training -who I consider to be novice gun owners - would be able to confront someone who’s terrorizing a school,” he said.
Multiple police chiefs and heads of all eight of Idaho’s public universities have told the Legislature they don’t want to see firearms on campuses. In a letter this week, for instance, BSU president Bob Kustra raised the specter of being forced to invest millions in security, if the bill passes.
Not all of the sign-toting demonstrators were against the bill.
Boise State University junior Nick Ferronato was one of about 20 people participating in a counter-protest, arguing people deserved to exercise their Second Amendment rights.
“People who take the responsibility to get concealed weapons permit train constantly,” Ferronato said. “They’re lovers of shooting and they go out and shoot a lot. They take that responsibility very seriously.”
Fellow counter-protester Andrew Cruz, a BSU student and a military veteran who served in Iraq, brought his handgun with him to the rally. His firearm holstered on his hip, Cruz said criminals who know college students or professors might be packing will likely avoid targeting a campus.
But most of those at Thursday’s rally disagreed, calling campus-carry unnecessary.
“I just don’t understand why they’d feel so threatened at school,” said Christopher Smith, a junior at BSU. “I’ve never felt that way.”
He said lifting the ban on campus firearms would put others’ safety in jeopardy.
“Somebody’s going to get hurt,” Smith said. “That’s what I think is the biggest risk.”
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