Right to Lawfully Carry Concealed on the VT Campus

I, the undersigned, request you to overturn the current policy, number 5616 section 2.2, restricting the right of students, faculty, and staff with concealed handgun permits to carry on Virginia Tech's campus for self-defense.

When this policy was revisited in 2005 in response to a harmless, law-abiding individual carrying on campus, you chose to leave the ban in place. As we saw, this left the door open to a harmful, law-violating individual to murder our friends and family with absolutely no resistance. Now, our institution will always be known for this horrible event.

Since you have said in the past that you are willing to consider any action that would improve campus safety, I write to you today to ask you to revisit this policy once again. In the past two years, advocates have gathered extensive research to back the argument that allowing concealed carry on campus would not only cause no problems, but would increase the safety of individuals on campus. This research is readily available and would gladly be presented at your request.

Advocates have also consulted with various experts and lawmakers on the topic; few have expressed concern for extending concealed carry rights to campus. Many of the candidates of last week's Virginia elections directly endorsed the right to carry on campus, yet still won; clearly, voters are not greatly concerned, either. Additionally, Virginia Tech Chief of Police Wendell Flinchum indicated that all Virginia Tech Police are trained to encounter armed citizens both on and off campus, as well as in emergency situations. Relatedly, in 2005, the Virginia Attorney General opined that Virginia public campuses "may not impose general prohibition on carrying of concealed weapons by permitted individuals" but felt that rules could be imposed against students and employees (AG 05-078).

I would like to see you end this ineffective policy against your own students, faculty, and staff today, a policy which has served only to disarm those who are "neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes," to quote the great Thomas Jefferson.

Thank you for your time and consideration.