SoCal School Police Arm Selves with Semi-Automatic Rifles
Some folks aren't happy about it
The Fontana Unified School District's 14 police officers were recently armed with semi-automatic rifles, drawing sharp criticism from some in the community who oppose having such weapons on campuses.
The Colt 6940 model rifles, which cost about $1,000 each, will be kept in on-campus safes and only be used in "extreme emergency cases" like the Newtown, Conn., massacre, said Supt. Cali Olsen-Binks.
The district purchased the rifles in October and they arrived in December, before the tragedy in Newtown, where a gunman killed 26 people — 20 of them children — at an elementary school. The shooting sparked a debate on whether armed school guards could prevent these types of tragedies.
The rifles have been on campuses since students returned from winter break in January, said Fontana Unified School District Police Chief Billy Green.
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From reading the headline I assumed they meant the guards were walking around with them, which would be disgusting because it would desensitize the students to the presence of a police state. But, having them locked away in a safe, out of sight until they are needed? Right on.