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Lawmaker Wants To Allow Guns On Arizona College Campuses

Sonny Borrelli
Arizona State Legislature
/
file | agency
Sonny Borrelli

A veteran state lawmaker wants to allow some people to be armed with everything from guns and knives to baseball bats and chemical Mace on Arizona college and university campuses.

Current law makes it a crime to have a gun on a college campus. And schools have their own policies banning other weapons.

Rep. Sonny Borrelli, R-Lake Havasu, said that can leave people unprotected while they're waiting for law enforcement to respond.

"Just to have a blue light every so many feet is not necessarily going to keep you safe," he said. "So you're going to run over there and make a phone call? Well, by the time you're waiting for the police or somebody to show up, a lot of bad things can happen."

Similar bills have been beaten back in the past, even ones limited to only concealed carry permit holders.

Borrelli said opponents may have a point. So he's proposing that people who want to have a gun to help in potential active shooter situations must have special training. He said they will need to know not just how to fire a gun, but also when not to use it in certain situations.

"Obviously, you have a right to defend yourself. But you don't have the right to leave the classroom and go out into the hallway and play Harry Hero. Because then you're going to become part of the problem, not the solution," he said.

A spokeswoman for the Board of Regents said the panel will discuss the measure next month.