OREM, Utah – A Utah Valley University student says he is within his rights openly displaying a gun while carrying a concealed gun permit, even while on campus. And that is what student Nick Moyes did Friday morning when he was stopped by the campus police and was told to put the gun away. As president of UVU’s Republican Club, Moyes was hanging posters for an event when he was detained.
Full Story – Here
So the law says he can open carry, but some campus cops don’t like it? Wow.. great… :roll:
If you are questioning how Nick handled the situation, you can see the entire video of the confrontation below in 2 parts:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjaQJs8eoMk[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzyYu9dhIY0[/youtube]
I honestly don’t think Nick could have handled himself better. He was polite, he knew the law, asked intelligent questions, and stuck to his beliefs.
It’s stories like this that I find really irritating. If open carry on campus in Utah is legal according to the law, then why did this incident ever happen? I don’t care if some of the students, or the police, don’t feel comfortable that someone without a uniform has a gun. Nick Moyes was doing nothing wrong and should not have been harassed. If you go to a university in Utah and you don’t like Utah state law, then I suggest looking into attending university in one of 49 of our other states. As far as I am concerned, same goes if you are a police officer in Utah. If you aren’t interested in enforcing the law AS WRITTEN, then that is not the job for you.
I say this again and again, but there NEEDS to be some accountability in law enforcement when it comes to situations like this. A police officer should not be able to harass someone for doing something within the limits of the law.
Comments
18 responses to “Utah Valley University – Open Carry Incident”
I have a concealed carry permit and always carry concealed.
I have nothing against the open carry guys but I don’t understand the motivation. If you have a choice to carry concealed or carry what is the advantage of open carry.
Understand that I’m not looking for a flame war but I don’t understand the motivation!
I believe it’s a personal choice Solomon. I don’t think open carry is any more effective than concealed carry, although there has been at least one story in the news fairly recently about criminals that were deterred from committing a robbery because of two customers open carrying ( http://www.examiner.com/x-5619-Atlanta-Gun-Rights-Examiner~y2010m2d18-Open-carry-deters-armed-robbery-in-Kennesaw )
Some people wear necklaces under their shirts, some people wear them over top visible to everyone… I think the choice should be there as well for law abiding gun owners. Also, depending on body type, concealed carry holsters might not be the best choice, or vise versa.
Well, don’t look to carry in Ohio, it is specified in our laws that carrying on a college campus is a no-no….
UVU should hire and or train police officers that know state statutes. How can you possible enforce laws you don’t know!
My sentiment exactly!
I live in Utah and have a concealed permit. I know the laws well. He was not in violation of any laws. However the school does have policy that are in fact illegal.
State schools, by law, can not have their own firearms laws, however this is exactly what uvu has done. The cops were enforcing an illegal school policy and were frankly uninformed.
It’s worth noting that in order to carry on school property you have have a permit. State law does not indicate HOW individuals with permits must carry. They can carry openly, concealed, or partially concealed.
If this ever does go to court, UVU should get hung out to dry.
Not from the area, but state schools usually have “State” in their name, eg Ohio State, Michigan State, Cleveland State, etc. (Guess where I’m from:P) If that’s the case UVU would not be a state school, thus capable of having it’s own rules and policies.
Good point Jim. According to the Wikipedia entry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah_Valley_University it attained “university” status in 2008. It was a state school before that.
I still find that weird that since the school still “operates” within the state, the could choose their own rules. Are you sure that is the case?
The state of utah has a law that says that no city, organization, or entity of any kind other than the state of utah can regulate the use of firearms.
The problem is, while Open Carry is not explicitly illegal in the state of Utah, it’s not explicitly legal, either. Now, most freedom-loving, rational folks would take “not illegal” to mean “legal.” However, to hippie libtard leftists, “not explicitly legal” means “illegal.” Utah, last I heard, was working to rectify this by making open carry specifically and explicitly legal.
hahah no kidding! Good to hear Utah is working on putting it in the books!
We as a society need to be very, very careful in defining what our choices are…
Is any and every action legal unless it is specifically defined illegal?
Or is every action illegal unless it is specifically defined as legal?
If something is not illegal, then why do I need permission???
James, by legal definition in America, “not explicitly illegal” = “legal.” Legal isn’t always in line with “right,” however.
Exactly !!! “not explicitly illegal” = “legal”
One thing I fear is too many people are beginning to think the other way around and believe that something is only legal if it has been declared legal to do – “not explicitly legal” = “illegal.”
By default, they are waiting for some other authority to give them permission to do something. If the authority doesn’t explicitly grant permission for an act, then there seems to be a belief that the act it is illegal. Or worse yet, if the authority is silent or has not defined the act, then that act is illegal because the authority has not given permission.
This “need for permission” attitude is childish thinking, and has its place, like in a parent / child relationship where the child is not mature enough to make their own decisions, nor mature enough to be held accountable for their choices.
But in society this attitude allows proponents to shift personal responsibility for their actions to the authority.
I think this attitude comes from the belief that it is the government’s (or other authority) responsibility to take care of the people; its the belief that the nanny state grants permission for all actions.
Me, I want everybody to have as much freedom to do what they want as long as they are personally responsible for their actions. Anyway I’m rambling on a bit.
Well put James. I agree with everything you said.
I’m a UVU student, and am just dismayed at this officer. I don’t want to have my campus police staffed with officers who don’t know the law they are charged with upholding. While I choose to carry concealed, I fully support those who carry openly. Since the campus police can’t be stationed at every classroom at every hour, the knowledge that students are armed could be all the deterrent there is to a would-be shooter.
Right on Matt.. Stay safe.