Campus Carry Revisited (PITT)

[Liam1694u]

I'm fairly new to the forum and this might be my first post, but I've been reading the past material like crazy. Lots of good stuff.

I just finished reading Ross11988's post on OC on State Campuses.
http://forum.pafoa.org/open-carry-14...ty-campus.html
This question applies to both OC/CC. This isn't asking whether a university has A right to ban firearms on campus, but more of a question of what defines a campus when dealing with a school like PITT. This question also applies More to students who wish to carry than random citizens.

It's easy for a rural campus to say no weapons on campus, and as a student paying money to a private institution, you pretty much have to follow the rules or risk expulsion (whether you agree with it or not). But what about an urban campus like PITT?

I'm 28 years old and recently reenrolled in night Grad classes at Pitt for my masters. I CC sometimes and have never open carried. Let's assume I'm walking down the sidewalk along 5th Ave and the wind catches my shirt exposing my firearm to a Campus LEO. They stop and question me, ask me if I'm a student, and it works its way down to me in front of the school's judiciary commitee for carrying on campus. If it was a professor who noticed in class that would be one thing. I would be in violation of school policy, but on the city street that happens to run through campus... I went to PITT for my undergrad and know that they like to have this notion that they "own" Oakland.

This isn't so much of a question as a debate on the situation. I figure as long as not caught in a campus building, the law is pretty much on my side. But what about 7Eleven on Forbes Ave. It's technically property owned by Pitt, being on the bottom floor of the Quad. It just happens to be a leased store front. That goes for A LOT of property in Oakland.

What's your opinion on this? As an urban campus, how does PITT think it could ever enforce such a policy. Keep in mind this is directed more from the prospective of a student carrying OC/CC.

[lildobe]

I asked a Pitt Police Officer this once (though I wasn't asking about carrying weapons), since I often cut through the areas between buildings down there in Oakland and was told that only the buildings themselves are considered the campus.

That being said, I have OC'd INSIDE Pitt buildings and gotten nothing more then a couple odd looks, but I'm not a student (and I probably don't look like one anyway) If you are a student there, I would NOT recommend you carry, unless you want to be expelled.

[Liam1694u]

Yeah, I don't plan on it. I just have a 1 night a week class, and it peaked my curiousity. After the Virginia Tech incident, it had be thinking about it back then too, though i wasn't a student at the time.

It's places like 7Eleven, Hemmingways, CopyCats, etc that happen to be leased from Pitt that peak a good debate. If I recall from my undergrad, I WAS allowed to own a firearm (even a handgun) and keep it in the residence halls even. I think the only stipulations were that it had to be in a lockable case and you were supposed to register (let them know you have it) it with campus police.

Of course being a CC person, I've always believed that so long as I'm not breaking any laws, what they don't see doesn't hurt them.

[dab86]

you are fine carrying on the streets in oakland. Forbes and 5th avenue and etc are not part of Pitt's Campus. They are part of the city. Buildings and certain areas of grass like that outside of the Cathedral are campus.