Firearms Owners Against Crime
Institute for Legal, Legislative and Educational Action
Institute for Legal, Legislative and Educational Action
Gov. Jim Justice (R) signed campus carry legislation into law Wednesday, making West Virginia the 12th campus carry state in the Union.
On February 21, 2023, Breitbart News noted that campus carry legislation had cleared the West Virginia legislature and was on its way to Justice’s desk.
Justice responded to passage of the legislation by pledging to sign it in “a matter of seconds,” once it reached his desk.
WTRF reported that Justice signed the legislation March 1, 2023, and noted that West Virginia is “a national leader” on Second Amendment issues.
During the signing ceremony Justice said:
We awaken over and over and over, whether it be television broadcast or whatever it may be, to see a catastrophe happening a lot of different places in our nation many, many, many times. … Without question, when that situation happens, if we have gun-completely-free areas, to where absolutely, without any question, there is no way we can defend ourselves, then it seems those are the targets that are targeted many, many, many times.
He talked of how times have changed, of how prayer and pledge are gone from school, and how respect for law enforcement is lost, continuing, “if we don’t try to at least put stakes in the sand and say, ‘By God, we’re not going to do this anymore.'”
Justice, “Today, does anybody here not think, that has a brain in your head, that just because we don’t have this, campus carry, that people can’t bring guns on campuses” for evil?
He then stressed that by signing campus carry he is ensuring the law-abiding can be armed on campus for self-defense.
The other 11 campus carry states are Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wisconsin.
West Virginia’s campus carry law takes effect July 1, 2024.