Beall Votes Against Mandatory Firearms for Campus Police

The Iowa Senate today voted against an Senate Amendment 3371 that would made it mandatory for security officers on our college campus' to carry firearms. The law, and opponents to the legislation, say that the issue is up to the Board of Regents. Sen. Beall voted against the amendment, while Sen. Olive supported it.

Folks, campus police at the University of Iowa, UNI, and ISU are PROHIBITED from carrying firearms as part of their duty. No other Big 10 or Big 12 school does this. These are sworn, academy trained police officers, and they are not allowed to carry firearms.

This is from the UofI Dept. of Public Safety website:

Applicants must be either currently certified as a peace officer by the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy, or can achieve that status within 12 months of their date of hire. The Iowa Law Enforcement Academy has specific requirements, so please refer to their website. In addition to the Academy requirements, you must successfully complete our Field Training Program, take a drug test at your own expense, pass a thorough background investigation, and pass an oral interview board.

Here is from the UNI Dept of Public Safety Website:

The University of Northern Iowa Department of Public Safety Police Division is the official law enforcement authority for the university. More than 25 fully certified, sworn police officers and dispatchers provide a variety of services to the community on a 24-hour basis. Trained full and part-time employees supplement agency operations. Pursuant to state statutes, University of Northern Iowa police officers possess full powers to detain, investigate, and arrest.

The ISU Dept. of Public Safety website is down, but I'm sure I'd find a similar quote there also.

The heads of these departments want their officers armed.

This is not a case of taking political advantage of a tragedy, as Senate Majority Leader Gronstal accused Republicans of doing today. This is about public safety. Do those who voted against this amendment feel that campus police officers are not responsible enough to carry firearms, even though they go through the exact same training and certification process as to officers in Fort Dodge, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Sioux City, and so on?

Let's hope the Board of Regents will reverse course and allow campus security the use of firearms. Keep in mind, these are state schools, paid for with our tax dollars, and ultimately, the buck stops at our state government. If the Board of Regents will not do the responsible things to allow certified, sworn police officers to carry firearms as part of their duty, then the state government needs to do so.

-----------------------------------
Stay Awake
Pay Attention
Always Vote