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Associated Student Government University of Arkansas ASG Senate Resolution No. 35 Author: RIC Senator Joe Youngblood Sponsors: Senator Shaelyn Vinson, Senator Amy West, Senator Cathryn Fleener A Resolution of Support for Teacher and Faculty Concealed Carry Whereas, Whereas, The University of Arkansas is a gun-free zone as mandated by state law and university policy; and Since 1950, every mass shooting of innocent citizens in the United States of America, with a single exception, has occurred in inappropriately labeled gun-free zones (1); and Current events and recent history provide incontrovertible evidence that designating an area gun-free does not deter an individual with the intent to commit criminal activity from illegally carrying a firearm onto campus; and Current policies against the lawful carry of concealed weapons on campus constitute a governmental and university guarantee that any potential victims are unarmed and that criminals may prey upon the student body, faculty, staff and guests at will and completely unopposed; and Professors and staff of the University of Arkansas, who teach, study, work, and live on campus on a daily basis, are forced to be unarmed and defenseless under current university policy; and The college and city police departments are by necessity and their very nature reactive, not proactive entities and cannot effectively safeguard all within the university at all times as proven by the numerous crimes that occur on and around campus every semester; and The University of Arkansas written policy seeks disciplinary action against students, faculty, and staff who attempt to exercise their otherwise statewide license to carry concealed weapons lawfully in accordance with existing laws; and Over 200 Campuses in the United States, in 6 states, allow concealed carry on campus and have yet to experience a single resultant loss of life, injury from a lawfully carried firearm, criminal
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Whereas,

Whereas,

Whereas,

Whereas,

Whereas,

Whereas,

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misuse of a legal firearm, or suicide by legally carried firearm despite hundreds of consecutive semesters of allowing concealed carry(3); and Whereas, As per Arkansas Code 5-73-301, Arkansas' concealed handgun license holders undergo an extensive screening process, including: State and Federal background checks for both criminal and psychiatric records, attending an 8+ hour training course dealing with topics such as conflict resolution and handgun safety; passing an exam on the course material, passing a firearm qualification test administered by a state licensed training instructor, demonstrating proficiency with their weapon at, and being over twenty-one years of age, among many other requirements; and Because of such standards, concealed handgun license holders are some of the most law-abiding people in the country, with a study of licenses issued by the State of Florida finding that concealed carriers are 300 times less likely to commit a crime involving a firearm than the general population (4); and A strong correlation between the passage of concealed carry laws and a resultant decline of criminal offenses such as rape, robbery, burglary, and murder has been well documented. These studies have found that persons who defend themselves with a firearm are less likely to be attacked or to suffer an injury than those who used any other methods of self-protection or those who did not resist at all(5); and The average number of fatalities in a mass shooting stopped by police is over 14 persons, but only 2.3 when stopped by a lawful concealed carrier (6) ;and In a recent attempted mass shooting at a mall in Clackamas, Oregon, a lawful concealed carrier drew his firearm on the shooter and stopped the rampage without firing a single shot(7); and Recent simulations by a former Department of Homeland Security Risk Analyst and a national level firearms training institute revealed that, in the event of a school shooting, concealed carriers in a locked down classroom were 100% effective in denying an active shooter entry to the room, but similarly locked down classrooms without a lawful carrier inside were breached at will by the suspect(8); and
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Whereas,

Whereas,

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Whereas,

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Whereas,

An individual who is over the age of twenty-one and licensed by the State of Arkansas to carry virtually everywhere else should be able to responsibly concealed carry on campus; and Seeing a need for self-preservation against mass shooters, criminals, rapists, and violently mentally unstable persons, we seek change in state law and University of Arkansas policy; then The Associated Student Government, on behalf of the students of the University of Arkansas, support any and all legislative measures by State Representative Charlie Collins, or any other representative, that grants University faculty and staff the right to lawfully carry concealed weapons inside University buildings and on school property; and Copies of this legislation shall be presented to members of the Arkansas Legislature and to the leadership of the University of Arkansas System.

Whereas,

Be it therefore resolved:

Be it further resolved:

Official Use Only Amendments: Vote Count: Aye Legislation Status: Passed Nay Failed Abstentions Other

___________________________ Mike Norton, ASG Chair of the Senate ___________________________ Tori Pohlner, ASG President

________________ Date ________________ Date

Sources: 1: Kopel, David. "Pretend Gun Free Zones: A Deadly Legal Fiction." Connecticut Law Review. Volume 42. (2009): 517-584. Print; Fund, John. "The Facts About Mass Shootings." National Review. 16 Dec 2012: n. page. Web. 22 Jan. 2013. 2: Attorney General Beebe, Mike. "Opinion No. 2003-372."23 Dec 2003. Print. <http://ag.arkansas.gov/opinions/docs/2003-372.html>.
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3: Burnett, David. "SCC's Response." Students for Concealed Carry. Students for Concealed Carry, 13 Nov 2012. Web. 15 Jan 2013. <http://concealedcampus.org/2012/11/scc-response/ 4: Kopel, David. "Laboratories of Democracy." Hoover Institution. n. page. Web. 15 Jan. 2013. <http://www.hoover.org/publications/policyreview/article/7276 5: Rep. Stearns, Cliff. "Concealed Carry Permits are Life Sacers." Human Events . Human Events, 13 Nov 2012. Web. 15 Jan 2013. <http://www.humanevents.com/2009/01/26/concealed-carry-permitsare-life-savers/>. 6: Barker, Davi. "Auditing Shooting Rampage Statistics." nExaminer. Examiner.com, 13 Nov 2012. Web. 15 Jan 2013. <http://www.examiner.com/article/auditing-shooting-rampagestatistics>. 7: Benner, Mike. "Clackamas mall shooter faced man with concealed weapon." KGW News: News Channel 8 Portland, OR. News Channel 8: Portland Oregon. Web. 15 Jan 2013. <http://www.kgw.com/news/Clackamas-man-armed-confronts-mallshooter-183593571.html>. 8: Leghorn, Nick. "TTAG Simulated School Shooting Experiment Results and Analysis." TheTruthAboutGuns.com. The Truth About Guns, 07 Jan 2013. Web. 15 Jan 2013. <http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2013/01/foghorn/ttag-simulatedschool-shooting-experiment-results-and-analysis/>.