Senate considers bill allowing guns on campus

The Senate committee of State Affairs is discussing SB 1164 which would allow Concealed Handgun License holders to take their guns on to college campuses. The committee is meeting in the Senate Chamber.

“I don’t want to see Texas students picked off like sitting ducks by some deranged madman as has happened on other campuses,” said Senator Jeff Wentworth, R-San Antonio, at the committee hearing. Wentworth is of many author and co-authors of SB 1164. The senate bill is identical to HB 1893 which made it out of the House committee on Public Safety on April 8.

“I think it is a terrible idea. I’m not even sure why they are considering [allowing guns on campus],” says John Woods, a University of Texas Graduate student and was a student at Virginia Tech during the deadly shooting in 2007. Woods said he was surprised the House bill made it out of committee and now he hopes the Senate bill does not make it to out of its committee.

“I’ve spoken to survivors and they have all said the same thing, ‘Guns would not have helped. It all happened too quickly,’” said Woods.