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Florida State sued over parking lot gun policy

Florida State University is being sued over a policy banning legal gun owners from keeping their firearms in parked cars while watching games in the football stadium.
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Florida State University is being sued over a policy banning legal gun owners from keeping their firearms in parked cars while watching games in the football stadium.

The Associated Press reports a lawsuit has been filed by gun-rights group Florida Carry on behalf of Rebekah Hargrove, a Florida State student. Hargrove seeks not only for attendees to be able to store guns in cars during games, but to be able to drive to campus for class without violating the school's ban on firearms in parking lots.

Florida Carry seeks an injunction prior to Saturday's game against South Florida. State law allows legal gun owners to keep their firearms locked in cars, but the university does not.

"This newest prohibition they put on their game day plan was such a blatant violation of state law," said Florida Carry executive director Sean Caranna. "The law always allows this, but the problem is that we have a university saying people will be arrested for violating an illegal policy."

In 2012, an appeals court sided with Florida Carry in a case aimed at overturning the same policy at the University of North Florida. State legislature has considered and failed to pass bills in the past two years allowing students with concealed weapons permits to possess guns on campus. FSU president John Thrasher, a former senator, opposed that idea during his time in government.

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