Rush is on to arm volunteer ‘guardians’ in schools while a bill that could protect kids languishes

According to research gathered by Sandy Hook Promise, “An estimated 4.6 million American children live in a home where at least one gun is kept loaded and unlocked. These improperly stored weapons have contributed to school shootings, suicides and the deaths of family members, including infants and toddlers.”

Senate Bill 56 — sponsored by Sen. Gerald Neal, requiring safe storage of firearms — was assigned to the Veterans, Military Affairs, & Public Protection Committee more than eight weeks ago. It has not been heard.

This is in stark contrast to Senate Bill 2 — sponsored by Sen. Max Wise, asking for armed “guardians” in our schools — which was filed, assigned, discussed, and voted on in one week.

On Feb. 29, I sat in the front row for the Senate Standing Committee on Education to witness the discussion of SB 2, which purports to fill a void for the hundreds of Kentucky schools that do not have an armed school resource officer (SRO) due to lack of funds or lack of qualified applicants. 

As the bill stands today, “guardians” are unpaid positions. Yes, you read that right. Unpaid volunteers, possibly retired law enforcement officers (LEOs) or military, who will receive training to carry guns in our schools. 

I can’t believe anyone needs to say this, but it is wildly unrealistic to make an unpaid volunteer responsible for protecting hundreds of kids and staff from a surprise attack by someone on a suicidal shooting rampage.

Sen. Reggie Thomas made a salient point. “When I read this bill, all I envision is that our children are going to begin going to fortresses, armed fortresses, and that we are moving further and further away from learning centers and moving further toward armed camps.” 

Is this where we are headed, schools as prisons?

I looked around the committee room and noted that no one from law enforcement or school safety was testifying in favor of this bill. 

Jon Akers, executive director of the Kentucky Center for School Safety, was sitting behind me. He did not testify. 

Ryan Straw, vice president and government affairs director for the Fraternal Order of Police, was standing in the back of the room. He did not testify.

Cathy Hobart, a long-time gun safety advocate, testified in opposition to SB 2, saying in part, “Sen. Wise brought up Uvalde. How many guns were in that school? How many armed people were there that day, standing outside the door where the shooter was? And those kids were dying inside that room. There has to be a different solution to this problem…” and “Sen. Neal has a bill that you’ve never considered that has to do with safe storage of guns. The kids that are shooting kids in school get their guns at home.”

Sen. Danny Carroll, a former police officer, acknowledged that we all have the same goal — and he is 100 percent right about this — to keep our kids safe. But “I’m troubled by some of this …,” he said, and that “the liability part of this concerns me. We are asking somebody to come in for no pay (and) we can’t completely protect them from civil liability. We protect officers, and they still end up in courts being sued from time to time.”

And then there was this exchange.

“I have an open door policy and always have,” Wise said. “For those organizations that have not yet scheduled or come to my office, I hope they do know also that open door policy is for everyone, regardless of opposition or support of this bill,” and that the bill was filed a week ago, Feb. 22nd. “You know how many associations have came [sic] to me to talk about their concerns with the bill, Senator (Carroll)?” 

Wise gave a sign for “zero.”

Until Wise filed SB 2 a week ago, I did not know it existed. But back in the fall, I attempted to talk with him twice about potential firearm legislation. 

On Sep. 11, I emailed Wise. The subject line read: “Mental health and gun violence prevention — we need your help,” and closed with, “You will often see me sitting in committee meetings, even in the interim, wearing my red ‘Moms’ shirt. If there is anything I can do to help you, please ask.”

He did not ask.

On Oct. 30 I emailed Wise again. The subject line read: “On potential firearm legislation in 2024.” I thanked him for a question he’d asked in an interim committee and closed with, “If you are open to discussing potential firearm legislation for 2024, I would love to talk to you. Please tell me what I can do to help.” 

He did not tell me what I could do to help.

Wise’s bill to arm unpaid volunteers in our schools passed out of committee as easily as blowing the puff off a dandelion.

Meanwhile SB 56 — keeping firearms safely stored and out of the hands of kids — rots in a drawer.

This is your Kentucky GOP supermajority at work.