FL and TX Shootings Provide Lessons for DC Area

WASHINGTON - April 17, 2025 - PRLog -- The shootings in Florida and Texas should provide lessons for schools here, says Professor John Banzhaf, whose studies led to an international report on what should be done to reduce the risks posed by crazed shooters.
UNIVERSITY WORLD NEWS - How Can Universities Tackle the Threat of Active Shooters? (https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20221011124140599)

The school in Dallas had metal detectors at the entrance, but the shooter entered from the outside through a different door which was opened by a student already inside.

The shooting probably would not have occurred if school officials had taken a simple precaution

He points out that it makes little sense to have metal detectors at the entrance if there are other unsecured doors.  The infamous Uvalde shooting also occurred because there was an unlocked door though which the shooter entered undetected.

Millions of business establishments have alarms which sound if other doors are opened.

This simple precaution discourages unauthorized persons from using the doors except in the event of a fire or other emergency.

Had such a system been in place in Dallas, it is doubtful that a 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 people inside who could then have run or taken cover, says Banzhaf.

The lesson should be clear.   Doors which should be kept closed during the day, except for a fire or other emergency, should sound an alarm if opened by anyone without a key.

In Florida armed university police were able to engage and quickly neutralize the shooter almost as soon as his presence with a gun was reported. If they didn't have guns and could not thus engage the shooter, it would have taken at least several more minutes.

Despite the fact that most universities - like government buildings, corporate headquarters, and even many places of worship - have armed officers, American University [AU] in D.C. has decided not to arm its officers.

And at George Washington University [GWU], some faculty members are trying to roll back its decision to arm a small number of its specially trained police officers.

They try to argue that GWU can better protect its students from an armed shooter on campus by using "holistic" or "woke" tactics - including "dignity of all people," "deep empathy," "nonviolent communication," and "bystander intervention skills."

But as yesterday's shooting should remind us, deranged-shooter-on-campus situations in most cases have had to be resolved by the use of deadly force – either to neutralize the shooter or to pressure him to shoot himself, says Banzhaf.