Should states allow schools and teachers to be armed?
The debate over stricter gun control laws, school safety and whether or not our schools and teachers should be armed has exponentially heated since the tragic Sandy Hook school shooting in December last year. Everyone agrees that the ultimate goal is protection of our children while at school and to prevent the recurrence of such senseless tragedies, but the means as to how we provide better protection for school children is up for debate between two opposing schools of thought.
Image by Alan Cleaver
On one side, the belief is to enact new gun control laws and prohibit the sale and possession of assault weapons. Others believe that schools and teachers should be armed and receive firearms training to properly protect our children. At this time, many do not realize that 18 states already allow adults and teachers to carry guns on school grounds generally with the permission of the school district or principal. Three states allow concealed carry permit holders to carry guns in school – Kansas, Mississippi and Utah.
The Buckeye Firearms Association is offering free firearms training to teachers and approximately 600 teachers from 15 states have signed up for this training.
Of course most states prohibit minors from buying and/or possessing firearms, but what about an 18-year-old senior? Shoud he/she be allowed to carry a gun to school just like some adults and teachers with the principal’s or district’s permission? Zero tolerance policies prohibit students from carrying ANY weapon including pellet and paintball guns.
This post was written by Natalie Jacobs. Prior to joining the AsktheJudge.info team, Natalie worked as a criminal attorney for over five years. She also has worked with Innocence Projects as well as Girls on the Run of Northern Arizona, a character development program for girls in 3rd through 8th grade. When she's not reading and writing about youth justice issues, she thinks about becoming a farmer, chef, world traveler, Bikram master, dogwalker and 80’s film reviewer.
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