Legal question

[vxtip]

I know as things are currently it is illegal to carry a firearm on a college campus, but what i would like to know is if it is ok to transport that firearm on roads that pass through that campus if you and the weapon stay in the car. Any major campuses borders are vague and undefined, and roads pass through them every which way, it is difficult to know when your driving through a campus or not. It also seems ridiculous to have to drive completely around a large university just avoid the issue.

I will be living in a house next year on one side of my campus, i have a carry permit, the church that i go to is just about straight down the road, which bisects the campus, do i have to drive all the way around the campus to avoid breaking the law, or do they not have jurisdiction of the roads?

My criminal law professor didn't know, so i emailed the university police several days ago, and im pretty sure they don't intend on answering, so any insight is appreciated.

[JcJ]

Originally Posted by vxtip

I know as things are currently it is illegal to carry a firearm on a college campus, but

On most campus' it is not illegal but only against the rules.. Big difference.

[kludge]

Originally Posted by vxtip

I know as things are currently it is illegal to carry a firearm on a college campus,

Incorrect. Or should I say, probably incorrect, since the definition of "school" can be broadly interpreted and I do not know of any case law.

but what i would like to know is if it is ok to transport that firearm on roads that pass through that campus if you and the weapon stay in the car.

Yes. And most would agree.

Any major campuses borders are vague and undefined, and roads pass through them every which way, it is difficult to know when your driving through a campus or not. It also seems ridiculous to have to drive completely around a large university just avoid the issue.

I will be living in a house next year on one side of my campus, i have a carry permit, the church that i go to is just about straight down the road, which bisects the campus, do i have to drive all the way around the campus to avoid breaking the law, or do they not have jurisdiction of the roads?

No, you don't have to drive around. Even in the broad definition of "school" the street is public property/access. IANAL, but if you want to talk to one I recommend Bryan Ciyou.

My criminal law professor didn't know, so i emailed the university police several days ago, and im pretty sure they don't intend on answering, so any insight is appreciated.

I carried at college, but I didn't bother to ask or think of asking permission. If there was a policy in place at the time I do not know. I was never informed of one, no one ever gave me a "student "handbook", and frankly I was probably too naive to know to ask the question, and the internet and the access to all the relavent laws was still several years off.

Would I do it again? Yup.

[Scutter01]

Your initial premise (that carrying on a college campus is illegal) is false. That makes the rest of your questions moot. However, even assuming, for the moment, that it's true, with your LTCH, you would still be able to drive across the property legally, you just likely wouldn't be able to exit your vehicle or leave the firearm inside when you parked (similar to K-12 schools).

Your school may have an administrative rule prohibiting you from having a firearm on campus, but at worst you could only be expelled as it would not be a criminal offense.

[NateIU10]

I drive through campus all the time with a gun in the car.

As others have said, it's not illegal to even carry on campus. Now, if you're pulled over, the gun is somehow found and then the police for some reason report it to the university, who for some reason decides to expel you or such, I think you'd have a good case to sue/challenge it. You're on a public roadway.

[jsgolfman]

Originally Posted by Scutter01

Your initial premise (that carrying on a college campus is illegal) is false. That makes the rest of your questions moot. However, even assuming, for the moment, that it's true, with your LTCH, you would still be able to drive across the property legally, you just likely wouldn't be able to exit your vehicle or leave the firearm inside when you parked (similar to K-12 schools).

Your school may have an administrative rule prohibiting you from having a firearm on campus, but at worst you could only be expelled as it would not be a criminal offense.

Continuing this train of thought. What if you had a flat? Technically, you would be breaking the law if you fixed it or got out of the vehicle for an officer if he stopped to help. Is that correct? If so, then we definitely live in bizarro world.

[Scutter01]

Originally Posted by jsgolfman

Continuing this train of thought. What if you had a flat? Technically, you would be breaking the law if you fixed it or got out of the vehicle for an officer if he stopped to help. Is that correct? If so, then we definitely live in bizarro world.

On K-12 property, if you were dropping your kid off at school, you wouldn't be allowed to leave your car even if you had a flat tire. I would hope that any responding officer would use his judgement, but I wouldn't be willing to bet my freedom on it.