OHIO COUNTY, W.Va. (WTRF) – Now that the West Virginia Campus Carry Bill, also known as Senate Bill 10, has been officially signed into law, what will it look like for gun owners and college administrators when it goes into effect?
While the bill will lead to more legal guns on campus in theory, our 7NEWS legal expert Diana Crutchfield says colleges and universities still have multiple ways to limit the areas in which someone can carry them concealed.
Most prominently, institutions can limit firearms at stadiums or arenas with a capacity over 1000, daycare facilities on the property, but also places such as rooms where disciplinary proceedings are taking place, and areas where possession of firearms are prohibited by federal or other state laws.
“I think the legislature tried to cover as many bases as they could for exceptions and to give the institutions some room to restrict the use and possession of guns on their campus. And they did that with about a dozen exceptions.”
Diana Crutchfield, Attorney
Institutions can also restrict firearms in on-campus residence halls, but not in common areas like lounges, dining halls or study areas. If they chose to limit firearms in residence halls, the law also requires the institutions to provide secure areas for firearms storage.
The bill also allows colleges and universities to limit concealed carry in areas where patient-care or mental health counseling is being provided, high hazardous and animal laboratories, and secure areas of buildings used by law enforcement. See the full bill linked above for more exceptions.
The law will officially go into effect on July 1st, 2024.
