Metal detectors were not installed at the Nashville high school where a teenage shooter killed a classmate last week, reportedly because administrators fear they may be discriminatory.
Even though many parents objected, the misguided administrators are to blame for keeping kids out, a former board member told The Post.
Fran Bush, a former board member of Metro Nashville Public Schools, stated, “I knew this day was going to happen.”
She added of the schools in the Tennessee district, including Antioch High, where 17-year-old gunman Solomon Henderson killed a 16-year-old classmate on Wednesday, “I knew it was going to happen just because it’s like a free open door, everybody coming in.”
Although parents supported requests for metal detectors to keep their children safe, Bush, who was on the MNPS board from 2018 to 2022, claimed that she campaigned for them throughout her time there but that district director Adrienne Battle “didn’t want to hear it.”
Battle informed reporters that the district lacked metal detectors after Henderson killed fellow teen Josselin Corea Escalante before shooting himself to death, citing research indicating that metal detectors may have “unintended consequences.”
Although the specific repercussions Battle was referring to are yet unknown, MNPS provided The Post with two studies that indicate metal detectors cause pupils to feel insecure and afraid. The efficiency of metal detectors in keeping guns out of areas was also questioned by the studies.
According to one study that MNPS presented, metal detectors also disproportionately target kids of color. This is a feature that has been the subject of various studies over the years, with findings indicating that it causes fear among minority students.
Bush, meanwhile, called such “unintended consequences” “a bunch of bull” and described them as little more than excuses.
“There’s no study [that] shows metal detectors don’t work,” she stated. “If that was the case, then we won’t have them in our airports, sports games, we wouldn’t have them in all these places that require security,” Bush said.
Furthermore, Bush claimed that during her own investigation into the plan, the students themselves informed her that they desired metal detectors.
“I went to the high school, I went to the middle school, and I also went to the elementary school,” she stated. “These children will tell you they don’t have a fear of metal detectors. They don’t have fear of something is gonna help protect them. That’s what they want. They want to be protected.”
MNPS already deployed AI-powered gun-detection cameras to notify authorities if someone draws a firearm within its classrooms, and some Tennessee school districts currently have metal detectors in their buildings.
When Henderson pulled out his revolver in the school cafeteria, Antioch High’s AI system did not recognize it.
However, Bush claims that MNPS had “every opportunity” to implement “common sense” precautions like metal detectors at the front doors, which would have “absolutely” prevented Henderson, who entered the school premises with a weapon without incident.
Bush said that the millions of dollars in relief money that MNPS received during COVID included funding for the installation of metal detectors and other new security measures.
Bush asserted, however, that the administration was never interested.
“Why you choose not to move forward on something it’s gonna save the lives of children?” Bush stated.
This opposition coincides with an increase of concerning occurrences in Tennessee public schools.
According to the Tennessee Department of Education, the number of students detected in possession of firearms has increased to over 50% in recent years.
During the 2021–2022 school year, 127 students were found in possession of pistols, and 13 students were found in possession of a rifle or shotgun.
Dolton’s Mayor Tiffany Henyard in Legal Trouble for Allegedly Stonewalling Liquor Licenses
This represents an increase from 75 instances during the 2018–2019 academic year.
Police and security officers, shatterproof glass windows, random searches with metal-detecting wands and K-9s, emergency alert buttons for teachers, and “strong communication” between students, staff, and parents are just a few of the security measures that the school district highlighted as being in place on its campuses.
Basset Cattle Dog Simon Sworn in as NYC’s New Honorary Dog Mayor After Wild Election
“When weapons have been discovered in schools before, it has often been the result of people telling a trusted adult about their knowledge or suspicions,” a school district rep stated.
In addition to criminal consequences, bringing a firearm to school is a zero-tolerance policy that carries mandatory expulsion.
“We are exploring all options to strengthen security at Antioch High School, as well as other schools in the district.”
Leave a Comment