On Sunday, Oct. 16, there was a shooting in the Walla Walla Dog Park. According to an Oct. 17 article in the Union-Bulletin, Terry Bickford, 59, and Tyler Larson, 22, had a heated disagreement that ended when Larson shot Bickford in the thigh with a handgun. In a police report, Larson claimed that the argument started when he observed Bickford verbally abusing a woman and physically abusing her dog and he intervened. Larson had a permit to carry a concealed weapon and was released from custody after an interview at the police station.
Because of the potential dangers of carrying: even legally: a gun, there is a strict no-gun policy at Whitman.
The student handbook states: “No firearms or ammunition are permitted in outdoor areas of the campus or in any college-owned, student-occupied buildings, including all fraternities and rentals, or in conjunction with any college-sponsored activity.”
Dean of Students Chuck Cleveland said that students have generally followed this rule.
“We haven’t really had any problems. It’s just a policy for the safety of all,” he said.
Sophomore Matthew Morris believes that even if someone is educated on how to use a gun, that is not enough assurance that he or she will always use it properly.
“I would feel very uncomfortable if people were regularly armed and walking around campus not because I am uncomfortable handling weapons but because it is up to those individuals to choose to handle that weapon in a certain way. I do not trust that people are educated about handling weapons or knowledgeable enough to handle them safely,” he said via email.
Even though they cannot have them on campus, several students own guns to go hunting and shooting.
Senior David DeVine owns firearms so that he can hunt. In order to comply with the college policy, he keeps them in a storage facility on Ninth Street.
“I’ve been hunting since I was 13 in Eastern Washington,” he said. “[Now] I go as much as I can during the season, but generally that just means weekends.”
DeVine feels safe about the use of firearms because of the amount of training and steps hunters have to go through in order to become certified to practice the sport. Anyone under 35 who wants to hunt has to take a hunter education course through the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Additionally, each year hunters have to apply for permits to hunt both large and small game.
Despite feeling relatively safe about the way he uses guns, DeVine recognized the potential dangers of participating in a hobby that involves use of a deadly weapon.
“Certainly in the wrong hands and without proper knowledge and experience, guns are a huge liability. I’ve never gone hunting with anyone who I don’t trust,” he said.
Senior Bennett Baucom picked up his shooting hobby while at Whitman.
“I had been shooting plenty before, but I mainly picked up the hobby a bit over a year ago after my friend brought some of his guns up and we went shooting frequently. Soon thereafter, I bought an old .22LR rifle for casual target practice,” he said via email.
Baucom usually goes shooting once every other week in the Umatilla National Forest.
Senior Robin Miller went shooting for the first time last year. She and a group of friends used student-owned rifles to go shooting.
Miller believes that it’s acceptable to use guns for sporting events.
“I think as long as they’re educated on how to use the gun safely and they use it responsibly, it’s perfectly fine to have that hobby,” she said.
