Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General, Says Banning Guns in Dorms Would Violate Campus Carry Law

Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General, Says Banning Guns in Dorms Would Violate Campus Carry Law
Gun activists march close to The University of Texas campus December 12, 2015 in Austin, Texas. In addition to the event put on by DontComply.com, a gun activist organization, the group also held an open carry walk earlier in the day. Photo by Drew Anthony Smith/Getty Images
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AUSTIN, Texas—The attorney general of Texas said late Monday that banning guns in college dorm rooms violates the state’s newly approved “campus carry” law, and also opined on setting limits for carrying weapons onto public school grounds and into multiuse government buildings.

Republican Ken Paxton’s flurry of nonbinding opinions addressed many much-watched issues, but could also spark a showdown with the University of Texas. His decision came barely a week after a panel at the school’s flagship Austin campus recommended allowing concealed guns inside classrooms but banning them in dorms and at sporting events.

The law taking effect in August requires public universities to designate specific areas where people with concealed handgun permits can carry their weapons. Lawmakers approved it despite strong opposition from students, faculty and even University of Texas System Chancellor William McRaven, the former head of U.S. Special Operations Command who directed the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden.

“If a public institution of higher education placed a prohibition on handguns in the institution’s campus residential facilities, it would effectively prohibit license holders in those facilities from carrying concealed handguns on campus, in violation of the express terms of Senate Bill 11,” Paxton wrote, referring to the measure’s title when it was debated and approved in the Republican-controlled state Legislature.

Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images)
Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images)