VB attorney proposes arming trained staff members in schools

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Should school staff members be allowed to carry guns in case of an emergency? A Virginia Beach attorney says “yes” and believes he has a plan to make it happen.

“Every day you put your kid on the bus, you hope they come home, and you have no control once they leave,” attorney Tim Anderson said. 

On Monday afternoon, it’s business as usual inside Virginia Beach City Public Schools, but America has seen tragedy strike unexpectedly in an instant.

“We are sitting ducks right now if an active shooter comes into a campus in Virginia Beach,” Anderson said.

Anderson, who has three children in the school system, believes he has come up with a plan to keep kids safe.

“I am 100 percent against gun-free zones that are unprotected,” Anderson said.

Right now, the only people who can have guns are middle and high school resource officers. There are 27 of those in the city.

Every school, though, has a crisis response team. They consist of staff members who help out should an emergency arise. 

Anderson wants to see the members of each team receive firearms training.

“I want to put them through a sheriff’s academy in the City of Virginia Beach and want to deputize them as auxiliary sheriffs,” Anderson said.  “Because they would be law enforcement, they would then be allowed to have firearms inside the building.”

Anderson says the plan would keep all schools, including the elementary schools, protected. He estimates it would cost $9 million, but points out that is only a 1-percent increase of the school system’s budget.

“The idea is that you have embedded inside the school people with guns that can respond to the active shooter and that active situation,” Anderson said.

Anderson plans to make his pitch Tuesday in front of the city school board.

Virginia Beach Superintendent Aaron Spence says he and the board are happy to listen to what Anderson has to say.  Spence says the board will ultimately fall back on what law enforcement suggests.