Ann Arbor resident Joshua Wade is suing the University of Michigan for prohibiting him for openly carrying his handgun on campus.
Open Carry is legal in Michigan and is permitted in many locations where concealed carry is not.
According to USA Today, U-M’s gun policy is a total ban on firearms — concealed or openly carried — except for law enforcement personnel “or the military.” The policy contains a caveat, whereby the university’s director of public safety can make exceptions on a case by case basis and issue a “waiver” to allow someone to carry on campus “based on extraordinary circumstances.”
U-M says it has a “right to regulate weapons on campus,” while Wade argues that the ban runs counter to state law and should therefore be invalidated. Wade’s attorney said: “Mr. Wade lives and works in Ann Arbor and is often near the U-M campus. He wants to make it clear that U-M… must comply with state law.”
Wade’s suit follows others that have already been filled against various school districts in the state for barring Open Carry on their campuses as well.
USA Today reports that Michigan’s Open Carry law “allows people with concealed carry permits to take guns into so-called pistol-free zones, such as schools, as long as the weapon is visible.”
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