Stillwater NewsPress

Local News

February 23, 2011

Stillwater mayor supports lifting campus concealed weapon ban

By Ricky O'Bannon and Silas Allen Stillwater NewsPress

STILLWATER, Okla. — Stillwater Mayor Nathan Bates says he is sure that many students at Oklahoma State University carry concealed weapons on campus.

Bates said he supports a bill in the Oklahoma Legislature that would allow concealed weapons on public college and university campuses statewide.

OSU’s O’Collegian student newspaper, covering a recent Student Government Association forum, quoted Bates as saying he “guaranteed” that there are already concealed weapons on campus.

When the NewsPress asked Bates to elaborate on the statement Bates said the quote was a paraphrase. He believes there are already concealed weapons on campus, he said, but has no proof “due to the weapons being concealed.”

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Steve Russell, R-Oklahoma City, would allow anyone who holds a concealed weapon license to carry a concealed handgun on public college and university campuses. Colleges and universities would still be able to ban weapons at access-controlled events such as sporting events.

Bates, an OSU student, said he supports students being able to carry concealed weapons. Citing the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech and the more recent shooting in Tucson, Ariz., in which a gunman shot 19 people, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Bates said he wasn’t convinced police response could be quick enough to save potential victims in such cases.

OSU spokesman Gary Shutt said university officials continue to oppose the legislation.

“More weapons on campus would not make the campus safer,” Shutt said. “The safety of our students and all those who come to our campus has always been a priority at OSU. Campus police officers patrol 24 hours a day, seven days a week, via squad cars, bikes and on foot. We have a solid record of providing a quick response to any campus emergency.”

Glen Johnson, Oklahoma’s chancellor of higher education, told state lawmakers last month that state higher education regents and officials at every state college and university would oppose allowing students to carry concealed weapons on campus. Johnson vowed to fight against any such proposal.

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