University should change weapon policy
Posted February 24, 2013 at 3:31 pm in Opinion
Since the Halloween shooting at the center of campus, the University of Southern California has taken measures to ensure students’ safety, but they do not go far enough. Only students and registered guests, for instance, are allowed on campus at night or in the dorm buildings at any time. But though these measures might help students, they do nothing to defend against an armed and determined criminal.
It’s clear that shooters target schools — and students need protection. Lone Star College in North Harris, Texas — where four people were injured — is a recent example of a shooting on a college campus. In 2007, the largest gun-related massacre in the United States took place at Virginia Tech. And Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook Elementary gunman, apparently chose the school because it was an easy target.
Closer to home and on a smaller scale, two students were held at gunpoint just last weekend in an attempted robbery near USC on South Figueroa Street, according to a Dept. of Public Safety security alert. Guns on and around campus are a reality, and though the new security measures help, they haven’t yet fixed the problem.
The solution is clear: The only thing that can stop a shooter is another gun. Though the Los Angeles Police Department has an impressive track record catching people who commit crimes on USC’s campus, in the case of an attack, students don’t have time to wait for authorities. If there’s the possibility for someone to try and hurt students, classrooms need to be armed and ready.
Since the Sandy Hook shooting, various state and local governments have pushed for laws allowing trained teachers to carry loaded weapons. Schools in Texas and Ohio are even paying for firearms-training sessions and permits to carry concealed weapons.
Mirroring these policies, USC should fund optional gun training for all faculty members and change its policy regarding weapons on campus. According to the SCampus Handbook, people on campus are not allowed to have “unauthorized use or possession of firearms or replicas, ammunition, explosives, knives, flammable substances or other weapons.â€
Instead of this policy, trained faculty members could be chosen to have access to firearms, which could be locked in classrooms. More DPS officers, along with those working at the Customer Service desks at student housing, could be armed and trained as well.
The Customer Service representatives ask each student for a fingerprint before entering student housing. However, there is no barrier other than the representative standing between a potential intruder and the elevator. This puts the representatives — and the entire building — at risk, making the training and arming of such representatives a potentially life-saving deterrent.
Finally, intruder protocol should be rehearsed along with the already instituted fire drills in classrooms and dorms. Though it is an uncomfortable reality, crime does happen on college campuses and could very well happen at USC.
Some people might be uncomfortable with firearms, but they’re the only source of personal protection in extremely dangerous and quickly developing situations. There are also those who believe that gun control is the only way to fix America’s problem with gun-related violence.
Yet the truth remains that when you’re facing an armed criminal and with no law enforcement in sight, the only way to fight back is with a gun of your own.
Leona Fallas is a freshman majoring in English and sociology.
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This article is tagged: crime, Halloween shooting, sandy hook shooting, shootings, student safety, weapon policy
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DPS officers carry firearms and there is already a massive police presence in South Los Angeles. The last thing are more guns on campus. Furthermore, we must focus on the underlying issue which is the relative ease of access to guns and our ineffective policies towards people who are mentally ill.
Are you out of your mind? Like anonymous pointed out, the police can’t even be relied on to accurately take down an armed individual. How can we expect a professor with extremely limited knowledge and experience with a firearm to successfully disarm someone else with a gun. And with that kind of access to weapons on campus, the potential for shootings increases exponentially. There is no way to predict which person may be the next Adam Lanza or Seung-Hui Cho (VA Tech) which points to two things: an increase in mental healthcare in this country is a must, and having access to weapons in classrooms could potentially arm the next school shooter. There is no way this solution is in anyway viable.
Play Black Ops!
It’s not a bad idea as long as they get some safety training and pass a marksmanship test.
Worst idea Ever.
I think there are a few logical jumps in this article. FIrst, the Columbine shootings occurred despite there having been an armed guard on the high school’s campus. Not to mention the shooting in NYC last year where the cops (trained professionals, theoretically) managed to shoot more bystanders than criminals. And how many civilians got shot before the LAPD took down Dorner?
We can’t even rely on the police to effectively use their weapons, and you suggest we let every 65 year old tenured professor keep a weapon in the classroom if they so desire.
I also think you’re somewhat conflating two different proposals here. Do you think that only trained faculty members should have guns or the student body? You say “Yet the truth remains that when you’re facing an armed criminal and with no law enforcement in sight, the only way to fight back is with a gun of your own.” So my professor is entitled to fight back under your logic but I’m not? I’d rather take my chances having the police do their job properly than rely on the faculty to turn into amateur Rambos.
Yeah you’d take a chance on the police getting there with a 5 minute response time. Too bad a 5 minute response time often isn’t good enough. Adam Lanza ended his murderous rampage when he caught sight of a first responder (policeman) with a weapon and killed himself. Had that first responder been someone in the school (ie teacher or principal), he wouldn’t have had all the time to do what he did. She’s right: The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.
You don’t need a gun to protect yourself when a whistle will do just fine. #LiberalTips2AvoidRape
I completely disagree with guns being allowed in the classroom. Why should students feel the anxiety of knowing their teacher, who either is politically anti-weapon or not at all comfortable possessing a gun has been forced to do so? USC, despite its location, has not had a shooting on campus within classrooms. The shootings at other schools have not been because of their location but because of citizens or students who have found disappointment in their lives and wanted some form of revenge. To be honest, I would be extremely uncomfortable showing up to class knowing that there was a loaded gun in the classroom. We already have so much gun violence in the US, why add the potential for more unneeded and accidental gun injuries, or even deaths? Instead, we should be thinking about gun control on a state and national level that would prevent another Columbine, Virginia Tech, or Sandy Hook. How about instituting better mental health institutions on campuses and in neighborhoods that could provide another option than resorting to violence. It is difficult to imagine that a teacher would have been able to prevent the carnage brought about by shooters if they’re already being fired at before unlocking their gun cabinet and pulling out their gun. And if they don’t have the large-magazine guns as Mr. Lanza did, they don’t stand a chance. I highly doubt you believe teachers should carry ak47s in each USC classroom. How would we assure no students or residents of the USC area could not steal the guns and use them in exactly the way you are attempting to prevent? If you believe that the classroom should be a safe haven for learning, you would come up with plenty of other ideas before proposing we place a gun in every classroom. More guns on campus creates the possibility for so much more violence and creates a culture that becomes more about fear than about education.
Not to worry! Those yellow jacketed security guards are all highly trained ninja fighters. So highly trained they can deflect bullets with their hands and feet without any injury to themselves.
So while DPS is investigating complaints of annoying phone calls and missing bike seats, our yellow cloaked ninjas will save the day!
“Instead of this policy, trained faculty members could be chosen to have access to firearms, which could be locked in classrooms.”
yeah …. riiight… guns in lock boxes in classrooms, what a great idea!
My god. Giving guns to a bunch of drunk freshmen. Can you imagine the carnage?