Senate debates 'campus carry' bill

ATLANTA - Opponents said lawmakers snuck the so-called "campus carry" bill through a House committee without their input. They were out in full force Wednesday to make sure members of the senate hear their side.

The House of Representatives passed the bill last week, which would allow anyone 21 and over with a concealed carry permit to bring their guns onto property owned by the state's public colleges, universities and technical schools. House Bill 859 would not allow people to bring firearms to sporting events nor student housing, including fraternity and sorority houses.

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Michelle Haberland said she and other faculty members in the University System of Georgia are concerned about the so-called "campus carry" bill. The state's powerful Board of Regents, which governs the University System of Georgia, has long opposed changes to existing law that prevents weapons on its campuses.

"We are really faced with the reality that come August, we may very well be faced with students that are armed in our classrooms, in our offices coming to discuss grades," said Haberland.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Rick Jasperse, said he drafted the bill to help students protect themselves at a time when crime is on the rise on campus. Several recent armed robberies at the library on the Georgia State University campus in downtown Atlanta renewed backers' argument for carrying on campuses.

"I think a lot of people might try to make you look at the big picture, but really it's a personal issue for those Georgians who are over 21 and giving them the opportunity not to be a victim if they choose to," the Republican representative from Jasper said.

But Haberland argues the bill falls short of addressing the real issue. The law would not allow guns at sporting events or in-student housing, including sorority and fraternity houses. And she said that's where the number one campus crime occurs: sexual assault.

"They are not getting, getting raped in Shakespeare class or in history class and this is of great concern to us that this bill doesn't address the number one crime committed on our campuses and frankly, more guns won't make us safer," said Harberland.

A law approved in 2014 expanding where Georgians can carry guns included college campuses when it first passed the House. But the Senate removed that provision before its own approval of the bill.

House Speaker David Ralston believes the bill has a better chance in the Senate this year because of the concern from people across the state.

The House passed the bill, 113 to 59, despite that objection. The bill is now in the Senate for their approval.