The ASCC senate held a meeting to continue a discussion about firearm possession for campus police on Jan. 12.

The 32 senators discussed the pros and cons about funding firearms to campus police for safety precautions.

Business major, Omar Anderson, strongly believes that money should be funded toward this safety issue due to previous incidents.

“What happened in Arizona should allow us to give this legislation a good thought,” Anderson said.

Cerritos College classified staff have supported the idea while faculty members have yet to be presented with this issue.

According to a legislation presented at the meeting, there are currently 69 community colleges that have police departments. Only three are currently unarmed, making Cerritos College one of the three.

Other ASCC members did not agree with campus police carrying guns but suggested that other alternatives be used such as pepper spray, taser guns and rubber bullets.

Anderson disagreed with the alternative idea.

“We cannot wait for city police to arrive when campus police could be armed and possibly safe lives,” Anderson said.

Ben Basuni, american studies major,  knows that the senate is not ready to vote on the issue and  feels it should further its research.

“I’m not necessarily against it, I just feel that we don’t have enough information and we really don’t know what the students want,” Basuni said. “We need to survey students; I want to know what students want.”

Others who attended the meeting like speech major, Katherine Garcia, did not have an opinion but suggested both parties have strong arguments.

“I don’t understand why we are one of the three unarmed colleges in California. I think there is a bigger reason why we don’t have guns,” Garcia said.

It is estimated that $15,242 will be needed to buy the firearms and train campus police officers.

Money has not been set aside and it has not been determined who will fund this cause, and many ASCC members agree that money should not be a factor.

The senate did not come to an agreement but will vote on it after researching and valuing the alumni opinion.

A vote on this matter will be held next week and will be presented to the Board of Trustees as long as both the senate and cabinet agree on the decision.

Pros and cons will be presented to the Board of Trustees, who will then determine if the legislation passes.