Bill would allow guns in class, not sporting events

CARSON CITY — Assemblywoman Michele Fiore, R-Las Vegas, introduced a bill Monday authorizing students and others with permits to carry concealed weapons to bring their guns onto the campuses of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Assembly Bill 143 includes a prohibition, however, on the carrying of weapons while attending any event held at a stadium, arena or other athletic facility with a seating capacity of 1,000 or more.

Concealed-weapon permit holders must be at least 21 years old and take an eight-hour training class.

Fiore, a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association and concealed- weapon permit holder, said there is no reason to prohibit permit holders from protecting themselves while on a campus of Nevada’s higher education system.

Fiore said it is an issue of safety, particularly for women who attend classes in the evening. Students sometimes have to park off campus and walk quite a distance without any security, she said.

Opponents are expected to argue against the bill using a lot of “what ifs,” Fiore said.

“In the state of Nevada, there hasn’t been a person that holds a concealed weapons permit that has participated in any unnecessary discharges of their firearms,” she said.

Concealed weapons are prohibited on campuses unless an individual obtains permission from the college president. Fiore said nine people applied to have a weapon on a Nevada campus in 2011 with one granted, and five of the 13 who applied in 2012 were granted.

“And that’s part of the problem, the picking and the choosing,” she said.

The restrictions on allowing concealed weapons on campus are explained in the Board of Regents handbook, which says in part: “The statutory prohibition of weapons, including firearms on campus is longstanding. The prohibition contributes to the welcoming and open nature of the NSHE institutions and promotes an atmosphere conducive to learning.”

In a statement Monday, Chancellor Dan Klaich said, “The bill permitting concealed weapons to be carried on campus is not supported by system presidents, law enforcement professionals or the chancellor. I believe that the Board of Regents has already fully addressed this issue through a policy that allows concealed weapons to be carried on campus under limited, appropriate circumstances. We will not support any further extension of that policy.”

Some Nevada law enforcement officials opposed the proposal in 2011.

Adam Garcia, chief of police at the University of Nevada, Reno said in December that he remains opposed to the bill as he did in 2011. The UNLV Faculty Alliance also opposed the bill in 2011.

If the measure wins approval in the Legislature and is signed by Gov. Brian Sandoval, it would take effect July 1.

The “campus carry” issue was a controversial topic in the 2011 session, when former state Sen. John Lee, D-North Las Vegas, brought a similar bill to the Legislature. The bill passed the Senate but did not get a vote in the Assembly Judiciary Committee late in the session.

Lee sponsored the bill on behalf of Amanda Collins, a concealed-weapons permit holder who was unarmed when she was raped by James Biela in a University of Nevada, Reno parking garage in 2007. Collins gave emotional and candid testimony on behalf of the measure at the 2011 session.

Collins said in her testimony that she could have defended herself if she had been allowed to carry her weapon.

Fiore said Collins is expected to testify on behalf of the bill when it comes forward for a hearing later this session.

Biela was sentenced to death in 2010 for the murder of another Reno woman, Brianna Denison, in 2008.

Contact Capital Bureau reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900.