Over the last two months, what would have been mass public shootings at schools in Illinois and Maryland were stopped by armed school resource officers. Of course, this should be three cases in a row. While Broward Deputy Scot Peterson arrived at the building one minute after the attack started, it was another 10 minutes before any officers attempted to enter the building.
After the Antioch Waffle House shooting a number of gun control advocates have said that case showed that one doesn’t need a gun to stop someone with a gun. Good luck with that. It isn’t that once in a while that can’t be true, but, as a general rule, that is not the best advice.
In any case, these examples don’t take away from our concern about the extremely difficult job that uniformed officers face in stopping these types of attacks, that they will frequently become the first target because the killers know if they kill the single armed officer, no one will be able to stop them.
Great Mills High School in Maryland, March 20, 2018
The attack began shortly before classes were scheduled to start at Great Mills High, a 1,500-student school 65 miles south of Washington, D.C. Cameron said Rollins was armed with a Glock, semiautomatic handgun when he shot a 16-year-old female student in a hallway. A 14-year-old male student also was shot. . . .
Dixon High School, May 16, 2018
The school resource officer confronted the suspect, who then fled from the school with the officer in pursuit, Howell said. During the pursuit, the suspect fired several shots at the officer but did not strike him.
The officer returned fire and struck the suspect, who was then taken into custody just west of the school, Howell said. He was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No one else was injured. . . .
The Santa Fe School District where mass shooting occurred today appears to be another gun free zone, like 83% of Texas school districts. You can find the firearm regulation from the district Employee Handbook:
https://www.sfisd.org/cms/lib/TX02215329/Centricity/Domain/92/Employee%20Handbook%202017-2018_2.pdf
Possession of Firearms and Weapons Policies DH, FNCG, GKA Employees, visitors, and students, including those with a license to carry a handgun, are prohibited from bringing firearms, illegal knives, clubs, or other weapons onto school premises or any grounds or building where a school-sponsored activity takes place. A person, including an employee, who holds a license to carry a handgun may transport or store a handgun or other firearm or ammunition in a locked vehicle in a parking lot, garage, or other district provided parking area, provided the handgun or firearm or ammunition is properly stored, unloaded, and not in plain view. To ensure the safety of all persons, employees who observe or suspect a violation of the district’s weapons policy should report it to their supervisors or call SFISD poli