MURRAY — A proposed discussion about guns in schools and churches may drag city leaders into the midst of a state and national debate that has fueled virulent passions.
Councilman John Rush would like his fellow elected officials to look at options for regulating firearms on school grounds and in houses of worship, and plans to schedule the topic during a future council meeting.
"I do think it's worth raising the awareness that these are places for safe learning or worship," Rush said. "I don't see the need for a gun in school or church."
One possible glitch: state law. In 1995, partly in response to a 1993 Salt Lake City ordinance regulating gun sales, the Legislature passed a law that city and county gun restrictions could not be more restrictive than the state's.
Rush admits that the City Council probably does not have the power to pass any gun laws; City Attorney Frank Nakamura has also said that state code takes precedence.
Rather, the focus of the discussion would probably stay on a gun ban for schools and churches only, Rush said, because he has no intent on prohibiting licensed gun owners from carrying their weapons elsewhere. He also would allow law-enforcement officers to continue to carry their guns in schools.
"I believe in everyone's right to own guns," he said. "But I also believe there are certain places where a person does not need a gun."
While support from elected leaders would certainly help efforts to keep schools gun-free, some school districts and higher education institutions have already taken steps to banish firearms from their property. Murray School District has had a Safe and Orderly Schools policy since 1996, and within that it prohibits employees, parents and visitors from bringing a gun onto school property, regardless of state licenses or permits.
The district policy does not run counter to state law, primarily because it is an administrative rule, not a law, said Director of Personnel and Student Services Dr. Martha Kupferschmidt.
"We have the right to establish policies that govern our schools," she said.
Universities throughout the state have also established policies that prohibit people from carrying guns on a campus, although the policies differ between schools. Some rural schools will allow hunting rifles if they are placed in lockers, while Salt Lake Community College just has signs warning people that guns will not be allowed as prescribed by state law.
The Board of Regents has openly supported efforts to keep guns off campus, said Executive Assistant to the Commissioner Harden Eyring. Although he said that most universities feel comfortable prohibiting guns, a law that supported the policy would help if those policies should ever get challenged in court. Thus far, a few lawsuits have been threatened, although no one has ever filed a challenge.
The Utah Attorney General's Office said it does not have formal positions about various gun issues, although it does have a number of questions. Primarily, it has no formal opinion because nobody on either side of the issue has requested one, Community Action Director Ric Cantrell said.
Not everyone would be excited about a new debate, especially since gun-control advocates continue to support a failed cause, Women Against Gun Control President Janalee Tobias said. Instead, she would like to see the energy spent on the gun debate devoted to different school issues, such as teaching children to read or securing more funding.
"I don't run around with moms who sit in their camouflage underwear and polish guns," she said. "I associate with moms who concerned about a lot of problems in the schools, and guns are not one of them."
Should the Murray Council pursue the topic beyond a discussion, its actions would start to raise some thorny legal problems. Tobias said that the Utah Legislature has been very clear in saying that no other body may pass any laws or rules that deal with Second Amendment issues. Already, she said, one Utah city has passed a law that broke that rule: Virgin, the city where everyone is required to own a handgun.
E-mail: jloftin@desnews.com