As "good guys with guns" stop another school shooting, college presidents say "no-guns" on campus
For at least the second time since the horrific mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary changed the way the country views its approach to security on school campuses, a heavily armed teen was prevented from carrying out his intent to commit mass murder because of the presence of other guns in the school - guns in the hands of armed protectors.
According to The Oregonian, two armed school resource officers (SROs) are being credited with stopping an armed teen less than a minute after he began his attack.
Troutdale school resource Officers Nick Thompson and Kyle Harris were at Reynolds High School when Tuesday's shooting occurred, Multnomah County Sheriff Dan Staton said.
"As soon as this happened, they were there in less than a minute," Staton said. "Had they not been there, it could have been a lot worse."
One of the first dispatches to police was at 8:07 am: In the boy's locker room, two shots, one person down.
Troutdale Police Chief Scott Anderson credited the two resource officers -- the first responders -- and two other local officers who formed a tactical team -- for preventing further carnage.
"I believe their quick response saved many of our students' lives," Anderson said. "For that, our community and I thank you."
At least one officer fired gunshots.
Staton and Troutdale Mayor Doug Daoust said local police agencies -- including sheriff's deputies and Troutdale police -- had done a training with Reynolds High School faculty and staff on active shooter incidents a few months ago.
A separate report says that the teen was armed with a semi-automatic rifle, a handgun, a large knife and nine loaded magazines capable of holding several hundred rounds. He stole the weapons from his family home after defeating security measures the family had taken. When fired upon, he retreated to a bathroom and reportedly took his own life.
It takes no imagination to predict what would have happened had there not been armed persons in the building ready and willing to respond instantly to protect the school - the lesson was drawn in blood in Newtown, CT and in far too many other defenseless school buildings.
Last December, another attacker in Colorado was defeated thanks to an armed school resource officer. The attacker, who reportedly carried a shotgun with about 125 rounds of ammunition, a machete and a backpack containing three Molotov cocktails, clearly intended to kill many people, but like this latest attacker in Oregon, he failed in his mission. The critical idea that worked in both Arapahoe High School and Reynolds High School was an armed response from inside the building - the exact same type of armed response that Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, John Benner, Ron Borsch, and other experts on the topic have suggested.
Having a good person, armed with a gun, inside the school works. Period. End of story. An SRO saved lives in Colorado and two SROs saved lives again in Oregon. The policy to have such a person in the school worked. SROs are expensive. I'm sure the parents of the children who did not die feel the expense was justified.
While SROs are a great resource, the reality is that many districts simply cannot afford to put one in every building. Authorizing qualified parents, teachers or administrators to carry guns offers great protection at little or no cost to the district. Volunteers can also augment the SRO's just as volunteer armed pilots work in concert with Federal Air Marshals (FAM's) on airplanes. When chastised by opponents of our Faculty/Administrator Safety Training and Emergency Response (FASTER) program, we challenged them to "show us a better way to stop an active killer, and we'll spend $100,000 on your idea. "We were serious, but they had no alternative solution. So Buckeye Firearms Foundation has budgeted that money to conduct more FASTER classes in 2014.
There was a class in March, another in April and four additional classes are full and will be conducted in the next five weeks. Additionally there will be a "level 2" class for people who completed training last year and have been carrying in schools for the past year. New schools continue to contact BFF asking for advice and assistance. It is clear that armed staff inside the building is the best solution we have for active killer situations. It is the future for our schools.
For those who rely on a "fast response time" from police, consider that the Colorado incident, from beginning to end, took only 80 seconds and this latest Oregon incident was reportedly over in less than 60 seconds. Most people take several times that long to read this article. There is no possible way police can be called to the scene fast enough. Effective response must come from within.
Unfortunately, according to a press release issued by Ball State University's Global Health Institute, "an overwhelming majority" of college presidents, when an attack begins, want to make students on their campuses wait longer for help to arrive. Well, it may not be quite how the press release was worded, but that's certainly the only logical outcome of their "no-guns" policies.
Every child is special, and every life is sacred. School leaders must take every reasonable step they can to adequately protect our children from violence. With unlimited resources, the Secret Service use armed persons inside the building to protect the President’s children. We may not be able to afford a protective detail for every child, but we can no longer afford to leave our school children unprotected. The discussion should not be about guns but rather about safety. The “no guns” sticker on the door does not work.
If your school has not made adequate improvements to their school safety plan, it is your duty as a parent to make sure your children are safe. Engage your school officials and make sure you are comfortable betting your child’s life on those who set the policy in your district. More information is available on our School Safety Information Page. The life you save may be your child's.
Chad D. Baus is the Buckeye Firearms Association Secretary, BFA PAC Vice Chairman, and an NRA-certified firearms instructor. He is the editor of BuckeyeFirearms.org, which received the Outdoor Writers of Ohio 2013 Supporting Member Award for Best Website.
Jim Irvine is the Buckeye Firearms Foundation President, and recipient of the NRA-ILA's 2011 "Jay M. Littlefield Volunteer of the Year Award" and the CCRKBA's 2012 "Gun Rights Defender of the Year Award."
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