ica and Australia covered the move. Tweatt took it all in stride. “Tanks to the news,
we have notoriety and we’re off the ‘soft target’ list,” he said. “Tat’s what the data show. If they know you’re armed, they don’t go there.” A key element of the
policy is that not all staff is armed, and those who are carrying remain anonymous, even to students. Te policy only refers to “employees.” “Tat’s part of the whole element of surprise,” Tweatt said, adding that if the armed staff were identified, they would be taken out first by an attacker. Tweatt declined to outline the tactical training provided to
staff, except to say it is intense, covers hostage situations and shoot- ing accuracy. He said Harrold employees are second only to the Texas Highway Patrol in shooting accuracy. “We don’t have to
worry about police officers or Miranda rights,” he said. “All we have to worry about is, there is somebody with a gun or knife and they’re hurting people, so we shoot them.” Given that some
schools already have armed School Resource Officers present, Brooks said he personally agrees with the concept of hav- ing armed people inside the schools. “It is an unfortunate
necessity, and kudos to the (Harrold) district
administration for taking proactive steps to protect the children and others in their district,” he said. “Tey are doing something new and innovative.” Brooks cautioned that it is also critically important that civilians who are armed receive solid, proper and ade- quate training. “A firearm is an extra
tool, and with extra tools you need extra training,” he said. Brooks also agreed that keeping the armed personnel anonymous is the right thing to do. “If you identify who
has a weapon, they immediately become a primary target for the bad guy,” he said. “Our research has shown that
in the case of an active shooter, the people who are shot first are people wearing some type of uniform. Ten, it’s those who pose identifiable threats, such as bigger, stronger males.” Denny Coughlin,
president of the School Bus Training Company, also agreed, and noted that given the situation in the world today, arm- ing school staff in some situations may not be a bad idea. “Tis is an emotional
issue,” Coughlin said. “What needs to be emphasized is that if you are armed, you become a hard target. Nearly all schools in this country today are not armed and, therefore, are soft targets.” Coughlin said other
parts of the world that have experienced domestic or international terroristic activities have armed their schools. “In most cases, we
don’t have an effective defense against this type of action,” he said. “Removing guns from society is not the answer. If you think passing a law to remove guns is going to be the answer, remember that we have laws against drugs, and how is that working out? If guns are not avail-
able, bombs would be an alternative, far worse than a firearm. While police normally respond within a minute-and-a- half to four minutes in many communities, a lot of damage can be done in that time.” l
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