Would Allowing Students to Carry Weapons Make College Campuses Safer?

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Increasing gun ownership among college students, especially if they live in campus dorms, is also likely to provide a prime, tempting target for gun thieves. Between 1993 and 2002, nearly 1.7 million firearms were reported stolen to police. The U.S. Justice Department has found that 10% of prison inmates incarcerated on gun charges obtained their gun by stealing it. Stolen guns have already been the source of school shootings in Jonesboro, Arkansas, Springfield, Oregon, and elsewhere.

Most guns that are stolen are taken from homes or parked cars. But these targets seem extremely hardened compared to the ease with which guns could be stolen out of college dorm rooms. Dorm rooms are small, limiting the number of places where guns could be hidden or locked up. They often experience considerable numbers of visitors, some of whom might decide to pinch a firearm if they see one, given their resale value on the illegal market. It is also unlikely that college gun owners will be able to keep secret the fact that they have a gun or guns, and many may openly flaunt this fact. Of course, this will also make it easier for gun thieves to learn where the guns are and steal them.

Once a gun is stolen, it is much more likely to be used in subsequent crime. Thus, if the sensible policies currently in place at nearly all colleges and universities nationwide are replaced by widespread student ownership of firearms, not only will the danger to students on and off campus increase, but so will the danger to surrounding communities. The best deterrent to firearms theft on college campuses is obviously not to permit students to possess firearms at all. Without guns there can be no gun thefts. Colleges that require students to lock up firearms in a facility managed by campus security or local police also dramatically reduce the risks of gun theft.