Tennessee lawmaker refiles bill addressing fire alarms and school shooter threats
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Fire or active shooter?
It’s confusion Tennessee lawmakers are hoping to avoid after the fire alarm blared through the halls during the Covenant School shooting.
One state representative is now reintroducing a bill that would require schools to create a plan during an unscheduled fire alarm.
“My precious baby, this is what happened to him. He was fulfilling his duty to lead his class to safety from a possible fire,” Mary Joyce said.
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Mary Joyce spoke on behalf of Will Kinney’s mother during August’s special session. Will was one of the six victims who lost their lives on March 27th.
“And with seconds of the building being breached, his class encountered the shooter. And he and two of his classmates were lying dead,” Joyce said.
In response to the tragedy, state representative William Lamberth created a bill that requires each school to develop a procedure when the fire alarm goes off.
“Our teachers and substitute teachers should be taught in every jurisdiction to listen for just a second, stop for just a second, evaluate, wait for a secondary alarm or some additional instruction,” Lamberth said.
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Lamberth said communication is important after fire alarms have been used as tactics by school shooters in the past such as Parkland, Florida, and Jonesboro, Arkansas.
However, that wasn’t the case in Nashville.
“The assault weapon that was used created so much smoke that it set off the fire alarm,” Justin Pearson, Memphis Representative said.
Lamberth’s bill gained traction in the House before the Senate adjourned during the special session, which ended in chaos.
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One lawmaker pointed out that more could be done when it comes to drafting bills after The Covenant School shooting. “It is preparing for these worst-case scenarios to happen, it is not doing anything to prevent them,” Pearson said.
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