North Carolina proposes laws allowing teachers to carry guns in schools

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

North Carolina proposes laws allowing teachers to carry guns in schools

State politicians see arming teachers as a way to better secure the school even as polls show it remains largely unpopular

Rachel Chernaskey
Wed 20 Mar 2019 07.00 GMT

North Carolina is planning controversial new laws that aim to ease gun restrictions in schools and allow teachers to carry weapons while on school grounds and even provide a financial incentive for educators to arm themselves.

The proposed laws – one in the state house and one in the state senate – were filed shortly after 2018 ended as the deadliest year for school shootings in the US since a US naval postgraduate school database began recording data. After last year’s school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland, Florida, which killed 17 people and spurred the March for Our Lives movement, public interest in creating more effective school security has grown.

Current North Carolina law prohibits firearms on school property, except when a permittee’s handgun is secured inside a compartment in a locked vehicle.

However, arming teachers remains largely unpopular. Poll data from 2018 shows that just 27% of K-12 parents have strong confidence their school could deter a school shooting. Additionally, 63% of parents say they oppose allowing teachers or other staff members to carry guns in school.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/20/north-carolina-proposes-laws-allow-teachers-carry-guns-schools

[Clash City Rocker]

1. So, school shooters will just shoot the teachers first

And some kid will get to the teacher’s gun at some point, and kill someone. I’m not sure how a teacher is supposed to keep a loaded gun around children without that risk. This is a very stupid idea.

[oneshooter]

4. And your better idea is? n/t

Sorry, posted to wrong reply.

[Straw Man]

5. Really?

So, school shooters will just shoot the teachers first

All of them? How's that going to work?

Did you read the whole article? I quote:

Before assuming their duties, teacher resource officers would be required to complete Basic Law Enforcement Training in coordination with local police departments. Applicants for the program who have at least two years of experience in either law enforcement or the armed forces would be given priority over others, according to the bill. After completing the course, participants would be sworn in as law enforcement officers and granted the same arresting rights as the state’s municipal and county officers.

I would call that adequate vetting and training -- certainly better than what is currently given to armed security guards in some jurisdictions.

And some kid will get to the teacher’s gun at some point, and kill someone.

I've been a teacher for 37 years. In all that time, no student has ever reached into my pocket. Not one.

[ManiacJoe]

3. Links to the actual bills:

https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2019/Bills/House/PDF/H216v1.pdf
https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2019/Bills/Senate/PDF/S192v1.pdf