Wednesday, May 22, 2013

News
Legislator Proposes Bill to Allow Armed School Employees
Measure wouldn't mandate guns in schools
By Lacie Grosvold


ANCHORAGE - One local lawmaker says kids might be safer if teachers carried guns.

It's part of a bill proposed by Representative Bob Lynn (R-Anchorage). His legislation leaves the decision of whether teachers or other school employees are armed in the schools to the school administrators.

Lynn said after Newtown, he started thinking that there needs to be a conversation on what more administrators can do to make sure that kind of violence never happens again. "With all the craziness going on around the country, I think it's time for a serious dialog on how to protect our precious children."

He said this bill wouldn't mandate teachers have guns if that's not what the administration wanted. "This bill simply allows local authorities, local school districts to have a dialogue on just that."

Mike Abbot, the Chief Operating Officer of the Anchorage School District said this isn't the kind of thing that school administrators usually take a position on. He hadn't a chance to read the legislation, but he said, "Generally the district has been comfortable with the current state prohibition on firearms in the school areas. But the board will have a chance to revisit that if they're so inclined."

The bill will be up for review by the Legislature when the new session begins in Juneau. That starts next Tuesday.