University of Utah v. Shurtleff

252 F.Supp.2d 1264

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH, a body corporate and politic under Utah law, and J. Bernard Machen, President of the University of Utah, Plaintiffs, v. Mark L. SHURTLEFF, Utah Attorney General, Defendant.

No. 2:02 CV 212 DAK.

United States District Court, D. Utah, Central Division.

March 27, 2003.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Alan L Sullivan, Todd M. Shaughnessy, Amy F. Sorenson, Kimberly A. Havlik, Snell & Wilmer LLP, Salt Lake City, UT, for plaintiffs.

Brent A. Burnett, Salt Lake City, UT, for defendant.

Brent V. Manning, Manning Curtis Bradshaw & Bednar LLC, Salt Lake City, UT, Stephen S. Dunham, Lila M. Bateman, Morrison & Foerster LLP, Denver, CO, John R Lund, Julianne R. Blanch, Jeffrey J. Hunt, David C. Reymann, Parr Waddoups Brown Gee & Loveless, Salt Lake City, UT, for amicus.

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER

KIMBALL, District Judge.

This matter is before the court on a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings filed by Defendant Mark L. Shurtleff and on a Motion for Summary Judgment filed by Plaintiffs University of Utah and J. Bernard Machen. A hearing on the motions was held on October 2, 2002. At the hearing, Plaintiffs were represented by Alan L. Sullivan and Todd M. Shaughnessy, and Defendant was represented by Brent A. Burnett. Before the hearing, the court carefully considered the memoranda and other materials submitted by the parties. Since taking the matter under advisement, the court has further considered the law and facts relating to these motions. Now being fully advised, the court renders the following Memorandum Decision and Order.

I. INTRODUCTION

In this action, Plaintiffs University of Utah (the "University") and J. Bernard Machen ("President Machen") (collectively referred to herein as "Plaintiffs") seek a judicial determination regarding a hotly contested and emotionally charged issue. The controversy concerns the validity—in light of Utah's Uniform Firearms Act ("Firearms Act") and Concealed Weapons Act—of the University's firearms policy, which prohibits the possession of concealed weapons on campus.

Specifically, Plaintiffs seek a determination by this court of three claims. First, Plaintiffs assert that the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution protect the University's academic freedom and preclude application of state law to invalidate the University's firearms policy.¹ In other words, they generally claim that the University has the right to create and maintain, free from government interference, an atmosphere that is the most conducive to the uninhibited exchange of ideas among teachers and students.

Second, Plaintiffs contend that the University's rights under Article X, Section 4 of the Utah Constitution preclude application of either the Firearms Act or the Concealed Weapons Act to invalidate the University's firearms policy. They contend that Article X, Section 4 protects the University's autonomy from state interference on matters relating to the University's core mission—i.e., to protect campus order and discipline and to promote an environment consistent with the educational process.

Finally, Plaintiffs argue that neither the Firearms Act nor the Concealed Weapons Act prohibits Plaintiffs from enforcing the policy. Plaintiffs assert that these laws should be construed to permit the continued enforcement of the University's firearms policy for the foregoing constitutional reasons and because these laws should be construed narrowly to achieve their limited purposes of preventing local authorities and state agencies from adopting laws of general application that would impose criminal penalties for the possession, use, and sale of firearms.

In complete disagreement, Defendant Shurtleff (referred to herein as "Defendant" or the "Attorney General") contends that there are various threshold issues that prevent this court from adjudicating this dispute. He then argues that, even if the court can decide the dispute, all of Plaintiffs' claims fail on the merits, thus requiring dismissal of this lawsuit.

Specifically, the Attorney General argues that this court should dismiss this case without prejudice because Plaintiffs do not have standing to bring this action. Next, he claims that, even if Plaintiffs have standing, this court is without jurisdiction to consider Plaintiffs' state law claims due to his immunity under the Eleventh Amendment to the United States Constitution. If the court finds otherwise, then Defendant asserts that Plaintiffs' claims under Utah law fail on the merits.

Defendant also argues that the court does not have jurisdiction over Plaintiffs' federal constitutional claim because, according to Defendant, a political subdivision does not have authority to bring a federal suit against its parent state based on rights secured through the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Finally, Defendant contends that, even if the court determines that it may address the merits of Plaintiffs' federal constitutional claim, then the claim must be dismissed on the merits because the University has no First Amendment right that would prevent the state from controlling its firearms laws and because Plaintiffs have not demonstrated an affirmative link between Defendant and any violation of Plaintiffs' federal rights.

Prior to addressing the parties' arguments, the court provides some background facts. While much of the background discussed below is not material to the court's resolution of the legal issues in this case, they are provided to give context to this impassioned debate. It is important to note that the facts set forth below are not disputed by the Attorney General.

II. BACKGROUND

A. THE UNIVERSITY

The University is a public institution of higher education organized pursuant to the Utah Constitution and the statutes of Utah. The University's students, faculty, and staff number in excess of 44,000 people. Its main campus in Salt Lake City covers 1,522 acres and consists of a complex of classroom and office facilities, research laboratories, residential halls for both undergraduates and graduate students, athletic facilities (including a 46,000-seat football stadium and 15,000-seat indoor arena), and a number of cultural and entertainment venues, including Kingsbury Hall, Pioneer Memorial Theater, Gardner Hall, the Utah Museum of Natural History, and the Utah Museum of Fine Arts. The main campus also includes restaurants, cafeterias, daycare centers, and a preschool. The main campus is also home to a large health-care and healthsciences-research complex, which includes University Hospital (the "Hospital"), a 425-bed tertiary care public hospital. The Hospital, which serves the Intermountain West, also provides inpatient and outpatient medical services for inmates from the Utah State Prison, Salt Lake County Jail, and other correctional institutions. Some of the persons treated by the Hospital are gang members or victims of gang violence.

B. The University's internal Policies Prohibiting the Use and Possession of Firearms on campus

The University has prohibited students from the unauthorized possession or use of firearms on campus since approximately 1977. Section 8-10 of the University's Policy and Procedures Manual—as approved in 1977 by the University's then—governing board, the Institutional Council—prohibits students from possessing or using "on University premises or at University activities ... any firearm or other dangerous weapon ... unless such possession or use has been authorized by the University." In 1995, the University's Board of Trustees approved a policy on discipline and dismissal of staff. That policy, which now appears in Section 2-9 of the University's Policy and Procedures Manual, prohibits University staff from possessing or using "on University premises or while conducting University business off campus ... any firearms or other dangerous weapons, unless such possession or use has been authorized by the University."

Effective October 30, 1997, interim University President Jerilynn McIntyre extended the foregoing policies to prohibit possession or use on campus of firearms and other dangerous weapons by all University employees, including faculty. These three policies will hereinafter be referred to as the "Internal University Firearms Policy," or the "Policy." Although the Policy generally prohibits the use and possession of firearms and other dangerous weapons on campus, it contains an exception for those expressly authorized by the University to carry weapons on campus. The University does not enforce the Policy against persons visiting campus who are not students, faculty, or staff.

The University has proactively enforced the Internal University Firearms Policy. University officials have taken special steps to enforce the Policy in the University's residence halls to avoid risks of violence and accidents. University officers with responsibility for campus safety believe that the University's enforcement of the Policy has contributed significantly to the University's excellent safety record relating to gun violence and gun accidents.

C. UTAH'S FIREARMS LAWS

At issue in this case are two statutes enacted by the Utah Legislature relating to possession and use of firearms—the Firearms Act and the Concealed Weapons Act. The Firearms Act provides, among other things, that "[a]U authority to regulate firearms shall be reserved to the state except where the Legislature specifically delegates responsibilities to local authorities or state entities." See Utah Code Ann. §§ 76-10-500 to -531 (1999 & Supp. 2001).²

The Concealed Weapons Act, Utah Code Annotated §§ 53-5-701 to -711 (2002), generally regulates the issuance of concealed weapons permits to Utah residents. Permits issued in accordance with the Concealed Weapons Act are, according to Utah Code Section 53-5-704(1), "valid throughout the state without restriction," except as provided by statute.

D. SUPPORT AMONG MEMBERS OF...