In the wake of last week’s shooting, members of Florida’s Senate Judiciary committee are again pushing a bill that would allow designated staff members to carry firearms on school grounds.
Republican state Sen. Dennis Baxley proposed this bill prior to the horrific Valentine’s Day shooting, but no action had been taken on it, the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper reports.
The proposed bill would allow principles the authority to designate specific staff members to carry firearms on school grounds. Nikolas Cruz, a former Stoneman Douglas High School student in Parkland, Florida, confessed to the Wednesday shooting, which took the lives of 17 students and staff members.
Following the attack, Republican state Sen. Greg Steube made the bill a top priority, according to the Democrat.
“I don’t feel gun-free zones protect anyone but criminals, and there is no evidence that says otherwise,” Steube contended, following the Fort Lauderdale Airport shooting.
Senate President Joe Negron has expressed his devotion to doing whatever it takes to keep schools safe. Following Wednesday’s shooting, he told the press about his intentions to increase funding toward school security and to allow officials the authority to protect their schools.