Kentucky Supreme Court Rules Universities CANNOT Ban Guns In Glove Compartment Of A Car Parked On University Grounds, But May Do So Elsewhere.

Supreme Court says gun in car is legal at University of Kentucky By Linda B. Blackford A University of Kentucky graduate student and employee was wrongfully fired for having a gun in his car, the Supreme Court of Kentucky has ruled. In its decision released Thursday, the justices reversed a Fayette Circuit Court decision that upheld Michael Mitchell's firing after police searched his car and found a gun on UK property. The case now returns to circuit court. It started in 2009, when Mitchell was an anesthesia technician and graduate student at UK. Some of Mitchell's co-workers reported that he had a gun in his locker at work. Mitchell told UK police officers that he had a concealed-carry license and kept a semi-automatic pistol in his car, which was parked at Commonwealth Stadium. UK then fired Mitchell for violating its policy prohibiting firearms on UK property. Mitchell filed suit, saying his firing violated the state and federal right to bear arms. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of UK, and Mitchell appealed the case to the Supreme Court. The justices said the case presented two conflicting issues: the right to bear arms versus UK's right to prevent them on campus. In the end, a majority of justices concluded that the conflict had to be resolved in favor of the intent of the Kentucky General Assembly. "We base this on the General Assembly's explicit statement that the concealed-carry licensing statute is to be liberally construed in favor of the right to bear arms, as well as the legislature's clearly expressed policy of exempting a person's vehicle from firearms regulation," the decision said. UK spokesman Jay Blanton said officials had not yet had time to review the decision Thursday morning. Mitchell's attorney, Christopher Hunt of Lexington, was not immediately available for comment. Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2012/04/26/2165507/supreme-court-says-gun-in-glovebox.html#storylink=omni_popular#wgt=pop#storylink=cpy Editor's note/comment: You can read the court's opinion here. Editor's note:Read the Supreme Court ruling against UK over firing of employee over gun by clicking here.