School Safety Act

RI Law Enforcement and Public Safety Officials Support The Safe Schools Act

Rhode Island Public Safety experts testify at the House Committee on Judiciary in support of prohibiting concealed carry in K-12 schools.

Interjecting guns in a school “would be a recipe for a disaster.”

Col. James Manni

Superintendent, RI State Police
Director, RI Department of Public Safety

“The shooter in the synogauge in Pittsburgh, were eleven people were murdered, was a concealed carry permit holder.”

Adi Goldstein

Deputy Attorney General, RI Attorney General’s Office

“Keeping guns out of schools make it safer for everyone that’s in those schools. “

Steven Pare

Commission of Public Safety, Providence
27-year Veteran of RI State Troopers

“It is a sad reality that even police officers, whose job requirements include being a well-trained, accurate shooter, regularly miss and at times misfortunately shoot and injure the wrong person.”

Col. James Mendonca

Executive Board Member, RI Police Chiefs’ Association
Former Chief of Police, Central Falls

43 States DO NOT Allow Concealed Carry Permit Holders to Bring a Firearm on K-12 School Grounds

33 Recent Mishaps Involving "Permitted" Persons at Schools

Click the date to see the media report of any specific incident. 

February 2019, Bus Driver Shot with Student on Board, MN
78-year-old school bus driver shot by CCP holding security guard in apparent road rage incident; the 8-year old student on board was not physically injured.

January 2019, Babylon High School, NY
School security guard and retired Suffolk County police officer left unloaded, holstered gun on the counter in a bathroom after school hours.

January 2019, Kingston High School, MI
CCP holding grandfather attending elementary school basketball game forgets loaded handgun at the school. The gun was found in the bleachers by adults who notified police.

January 2019, Mustang High School, OK
Loaded gun found by staff belonging to an employee with CCP, who planned to go target shooting, but forgot to remove it from his bag before coming into the school.

October 2018, Somerset Academy Bay School, FL
Fifth-grade student finds loaded handgun in a bathroom accidentally left behind by the school security guard; no injuries reported.

October 2018, Anona Elementary School, FL
While demonstrating how to do a backflip to third graders in the school yard, a CCP holding substitute teacher’s handgun, loaded with 19 rounds of ammunition, dropped from his waistband; no injuries were reported.

September 2018, Indepedent Elementary School, MT
Resource Officer leaves duty weapon in elementary school bathroom. School district officials declined to name the school, but said it was an independent school district.

March 2018, Seaside High School, CA
Teacher accidentally fires semiautomatic weapon at ceiling during gun safety training class; one student is injured by a bullet fragment, two students suffer non-gunshot injuries.

March 2018, George Washington Middle School, VA
School resource officer accidentally discharged his service weapon; no injuries were reported.

February 2018, Harmony Learning Center, MN
A third grade student pressed the trigger of a school liaison officer’s holstered weapon while the officer was talking with some students; the gun discharged through the holster and the bullet hit the floor, no one was injured.

February 2018, North Broward Prep. School, FL
Police officer shoots himself in the leg while responding to a false alarm.

February 2018, Elliott Point Elementary School, FL
Parent finds loaded handgun in bathroom, left behind by school resource officer; no injuries reported.

November 2017, Texarkana College, TX
Student accidentally shoots himself in the knee in the parking lot while showing his gun to another student.

October 2017, Oxford High School, MI
Student in scuffle with uniformed deputy reached for the offier’s gun and was able to press the trigger. One bullet struck the floor and ricocheted into a nearby interior wall; no injuries were reported.

August 2017, Utah Valley University, UT
A student with a valid concealed carry permit, accidentally fired his gun at a restaurant on campus; the bullet hit a table and a light, no injuries were reported.

July 2017, Kennesaw State University, GA
College student is robbed of wallet and handgun by armed robbers on campus 3 weeks after campus-carry law goes into effect.

May 2017, Augusta High School, KS
A man with a concealed carry permit accidentally shot himself in the foot; the bullet ricocheted off the ground, flying more than 50 feet, and hitting a woman in the calf.

April 2017, University of St. Thomas, MN
Student with a concealed carry permit accidentally shoots a bullet through the wall; a student in the next room suffered a gunshot injury to the head which required surgery.

November 2016, Bay City Western High School, MI
School resource officer, also a Bay City Sheriff’s Deputy, negligently discharged a gun, which went through at least one wall and struck a teacher who was teaching a class in the neck.

September 2016, Cumberland Christian School, PA
A 63-year-old teacher left her loaded pistol in bathroom where four children, aged 6 to 8 found and handled it; no one was injured and the teacher resigned and was charged.

May 2016, Oscar Patterson Elementary School, FL
A part-time correctional officer accidentally shot  himself in the knee while at the school for a job interview; no students were injured and the man was treated for non-life threatening injuries.

May 2015, Utah Valley University, UT
Student at firearms training course for people hoping to become certified police officers in Utah accidentally shoots another student; victim undergoes “very minor” surgery.

September 2014, Idaho State University, ID
Professor, and concealed carry permit holder, shoots himself in the foot during class two months after campus-carry goes  into effect.

October 2014, Westbrook Elementary School, UT
Teacher, a concealed carry permit holder, accidentally shoots herself in the leg in the bathroom; no students were injured.

March 2014, Weber State University, UT
A properly permitted student accidentally discharges handgun on campus; he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

January 2014, West Elementary School, IA
Parent, a retired police officer and firearms instructor, accidentally shoots himself in the leg in the school parking lot.

July 2013, Rhode Island College, RI
Staff member with CCPs in several states as well as NRA-certification as a “Pistol and Personal Protection in the Home” instructor, was fired after bringing a loaded handgun to work and losing it; it was later found in a garbage can.

May 2013, Rangeivew High School, CO
A school worker, who also works as an armed security guard for a different employer, accidentally shoots a student in the leg in the parking lot; student undergoes surgery.

May 2013, University of Southern MS
Police say student, a concealed firearms permit holder, appears to have accidentally shot himself in the leg.

April 2013, Salem Lutheran School, MN
Gun safety instructor assumes his gun was empty when he accidentally fired it; the bullet went through the wall of the cafeteria, no injuries were reported.

February 2013, Van Independent School District, TX
“Certified” instructor misfires during training of school staff, shooting school department employee in the leg; injury was non-life threatening.

November 2012, University of Colorado, CO
A properly permitted staff member accidentally discharges her firearm on campus and injuries herself as well as a coworker.

November 2011, Long Island University, NY
Criminal Justice professor, a retired police officer, was attempting to safeguard his handgun in the hallway of the campus building before he accidentally discharged it, shooting himself in the leg.

This act would prohibit the possession of firearms on school grounds except for peace officers, retired law enforcement officers, persons under contract to provide school security services, and unloaded firearms in locked containers or a locked rack in a motor vehicle.

Accidental Injury and Death by Guns is Rampant in America

These figures from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) DO NOT INCLUDE suicides or intentional firearm violence.

Debunking the “Good Guy with a Gun” Myth

Media Reports of 1,259 People Killed by CCP Holders from 2007-2017

These non-self-defense deaths by private citizens with permits to carry concealed, loaded handguns in public include:

  • 31 mass shootings that killed 147 people
  • 59 murder-suicides
  • 21 law enforcement officers

This is undoubtedly a fraction of the total number of gun incidents involving CCP holders, as there are NO federally mandated laws requiring tracking.

With just this glimpse of incidents gleaned from news reports and limited state data available, we must reject the notion of allowing anyone with a CCP to bring their gun onto school grounds.

 

Overwhelming Support from Law Enforcement and Educational Professionals

The Rhode Island State Police and the Rhode Island Police Chiefs’ Association support this legislation.

Our law enforcement officials know that ONLY trained police and peace officers should be armed in schools, due to the extreme risks inherent in hostage and high-stress “shoot/don’t shoot” situations.

Police officers receive this training. Peace officers receive this training (and are retested annually to reaffirm their proficiency).

Concealed carry permit holders do not receive specialized training and are not subject to yearly retesting.

24 school committees and 11 city and town councils passed resolutions in support of this legislation to keep firearms off of school grounds, including concealed carry permit holders.

In addition, some of Rhode Island’s largest civic, leadership, and educational organizations also passed resolutions, including:

  • R.I. School Superintendents Association
  • R.I. Association of School Principals
  • R.I. Association of School Committees
  • RI Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals
  • Learning First Alliance/Rhode Island
  • Governor Gina Raimondo
  • RI Attorney General’s Office

Accidental Shootings Among Concealed Carry Permit Holders Are Common

It is far more likely that an accident will occur on school grounds with a concealed firearm than any potential “good.” 

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