SGA supports no-weapons policy

Bill of opinion passes by narrow margin

Carolyn Walser senior photographer Junior calss president Britt Timmerman and junior Sen. Wesley Spencer speak with David Briggman, a lcoal resident who is suing JMU for its no-weapon policy.

The Student Senate narrowly passed a bill of opinion Tuesday, supporting the right of the university to enforce a no-weapons policy.

For more than an hour, senators debated the bill, introduced last week by freshman Sara Lunsford. The senator drafted the bill after Keezletown resident David Briggman filed a lawsuit challenging campus policy, which doesn’t make an exception for those who hold concealed-handgun permits.

"This is a bill to protect student safety, to support the right to have a weapons policy," Lunsford said. The non-binding bill doesn’t actually ban weapons from campus but serves as a representation of student opinion.

The bill was also passed by the executive council Wednesday morning.

Lunsford plans to petition the Virginia General Assembly to change state law, specifically allowing colleges and universities to ban guns.

"JMU has the right to make a weapons policy," Lunsford said during the debate. "A few people have said that having a policy like this violates the Second Amendment. But the constitutional right to bear arms is not unlimited by the Constitution."

Briggman watched the debate from the back of the Senate until a senator yielded him time to speak.

"I’m not asserting Second Amendment rights," he said. "I’m saying that the state of Virginia has granted me the privilege — not the right — to carry a gun on campus."

Regardless of the Senate’s decision, the lawsuit, scheduled for Oct. 20 in Rockingham County Circuit Court, is proceeding.

The bill passed by a narrow margin, with four more votes than the two-thirds needed.

The bill also required signatures from 10 percent of the student body. The final count reached 2,701 students — 7 percent more than Lunsford needed.

To accurately reflect the student body, Sen. Lucy Hutchinson said senators should vote on student opinion.

"Vote for your constituents," Hutchinson said. "This bill gives the university more day-to -day control. They’ll tell you why they signed and it’s because we’re more safe."

Still, some senators questioned the validity of the signatures.

"I think people felt pressured into signing even when they didn’t know what they were doing," said sophomore Sen. Ryan Powell, who also was approached to sign the bill.

"How many were given valid information of what this case is about? People didn’t sign for the right reasons," he said.

Lunsford said she kept a copy of the bill with her while asking for signatures.

"The legal issues aside," she said. "This is a bill to protect student safety and students support it."