Do you care about violence against women?

A LOADED QUESTION

from The Oregonian
the story about her suit again the Medford School District

Sunday, September 16, 2007

By JANE DOE

I'm the Medford school teacher you've heard about. The one who will ask an Oregon judge on Tuesday to affirm my right to carry a Glock pistol to my school so I can protect myself from a man who's hit me and threatened to kill me: my ex-husband.

In 2004, I legally bought a gun for the first time. It was a decision I deemed necessary after years of abuse and continued threats drove me to obtain a restraining order. I knew my safety and the safety of my children ultimately depended upon me alone.

I had strong suspicions my ex-husband had violated his restraining order by coming to my home several times. One time, I saw him leave, literally passing him as he came out of my driveway. When I reported this, I was told the restraining order did not forbid him being there when I was not home.

My ex-husband lost his concealed carry permit and his gun when he was arrested for menacing, several months before our separation, in an unrelated incident.

To be eligible for a license to carry a concealed weapon, I was required to attend a course taught locally. The instructor was thorough. I learned how a gun should be used, the dangers if it was mishandled and that I need to continuously practice using my gun. I follow those lessons. The course also reviewed legal ramifications an owner would face if her gun was involved in an incident. After passing the required background check and offering validation of completing the course, I received my permit.

I believe that Oregon law clearly permits me -- and anyone else with a concealed handgun license -- to carry a concealed weapon into schools. My employer, the Medford School District, maintains that I would be violating district policy if I did so.

A "gun-free" zone only informs a potential criminal that he or she won't face an armed private citizen, making a school a prime target. In addition, my school's police officer is assigned more than one school, and when he is working on campus, his office is in an annex away from the main building and far from my classroom. Second, my ex-husband is approved as a substitute teacher in my district, making it possible for him to be called to work in the same school where I've been working or at my daughter's school. Furthermore, my classroom has several windows, making it possible for anyone outside to catch glimpses of me or my students moving around the room.

Even after recent events in Nickel Mines, Pa., and Virginia Tech, where Amish schoolchildren and college students were gunned down on campus, very little has changed where I work. We have name badges, but if they aren't worn, no one notices. Doors do lock from the inside, but a teacher's key opens all classroom doors.

Children entering a classroom as students are just as important as the teacher's own. But, far beyond any wealth of knowledge that they might receive from an instructor, the greatest gift is assurance that their school is a safe place in which to learn. At the same time, this case allows them to see the importance of knowing our rights and helps them see that if left undefended, such rights may be lost forever.

It is woefully irresponsible to deny the possible risk of violence in public schools. It is shameful to attempt to victimize those who would seek to defend children in our schools, ridiculously inciting fear over teachers' mental competency or proficiency in handling a firearm. More importantly, it is abhorrent that any district would be so hypocritical to insist students receive instruction on the importance of individual rights only to trample the rights of their teachers whenever it sees to do so.

I encourage you to demand that the Medford School District obey state law and abandon its current policy that bans me from carrying a tool I need to protect myself, my students and my co-workers.

The writer is a member of the National Rifle Association whose legal bills are being paid for by the Oregon Firearms Education Foundation. Her lawyer, James Leuenberger of Lake Oswego, said he is listing her name as "Jane Doe" in the complaint he will file this week in Jackson County Circuit Court.