More School Shootings; Many Are Preventable

WASHINGTON - April 17, 2025 - PRLog -- There have been two more school shootings, one at Dallas which probably would have prevented if the school had taken a common-sense precaution, and a second today in Florida.

The Dallas school had metal detectors to prevent firearms from being brought it, but the shooter reportedly entered from the outside through a different door which wasn't secured, and which was opened by a student already inside.
Video Shows Alleged Dallas School Shooter Entering Through "Unsecured" Door, Affidavit Says (https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/dallas-wilmer-hutchins-high-school-shooting-suspect-tracy-haynes-jr-arrest-affidavit-video/)
School Shooting Suspect Slipped Past Security via Unsecured Door, Police Say (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/16/us/dallas-school-shooting-wilmer-hutchins.html)

The Dallas shooting probably would not have occurred if responsible school officials had taken the same simple common-sense precaution routinely taken by millions of businesses, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf.

Banzhaf, a former security officer and security advisor, is the author of an international safety report on simple and inexpensive steps which schools can and should take to reduce the growing risk of crazed shooters on campus.
UNIVERSITY WORLD NEWS - How Can Universities Tackle the Threat of Active Shooters? (https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=202210...)
LIST: 11 Solutions to Thwart School Shootings (https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/washington-secret...)

In it he says that it makes little sense to have metal detectors at the entrance if there are other unsecured doors through which a shooter can enter.  He notes that the infamous Uvalde shooting also occurred because there was an unlocked door though which the shooter was able to enter undetected.

Millions of business establishments have alarms which sound if other doors are opened.  This simple precaution discourages non-employees from exiting through the doors except in the event of a fire or other emergency.

Had such an inexpensive system been in place yesterday in Dallas, it is doubtful that another student would have opened the door from the inside to let the shooter in.  If he did, a loud alarm would have sounded, and provided some measure of warning and alert to the students inside who could have run or taken cover, says Banzhaf.

This simple precaution is recommended by many experts as well as by Banzhaf's report, yet people have been shot and died when such locks were not installed.

It is negligence not to take such simple, inexpensive, and common sense precautions now that campus shootings have become commonplace and therefore reasonably foreseeable, the law professor notes.

Another example of negligence by many schools is a failure to enable classrooms to be locked from the inside in the event that an active shooter alert is transmitted to teachers and/or students, he says.