The Florida state commission tasked with investigating the Parkland school shooting that left 17 people dead on Valentine’s Day last year has urged a change in the law to allow teachers to carry guns. The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission released a 458-page report into the tragedy Wednesday that contained dozens of recommendations on how school shootings might be avoided in the future. As well as arming teachers, the report calls for laws to be changed to allow school districts to raise taxes for security improvements and to require mental-health providers to notify police if a patient threatens anyone with harm. Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, chairman of the commission, said: “There needs to be a sense of urgency... And people need to understand that there’s an expectation and a rightful expectation on the part of parents: When you send your kids to school in the morning, there’s an expectation they’re going to come home alive in the afternoon.” Under current law, most teachers aren’t allowed to be armed—only if they’re Reserve Officers Training Corps instructors, current military members, or those with law-enforcement experience.
