“You couldn’t have asked for better,” - Raymond Parks in regard to the police response at the Central Visual and Performing Arts High School in St. Louis.

Parks was one of the teachers who came face-to-face with the active shooter, and he was absolutely right.

The police were on the scene about as quickly as possible. That said, the fact remains that a 15-year-old girl and a teacher were killed, and several more were injured. The security apparatus was proven to be ineffective at saving lives. To add some perspective, the average national response time for police to arrive at an active school shooting is 3 minutes (according to FBI statistics), in this case, it was 4 minutes. Once they arrive, police must start the painstaking and methodical process of clearing the building in an attempt to find the shooter or multiple shooters, which took 8 minutes in this situation. Once they found the shooter, they contained and neutralized him without incurring additional casualties, an ideal scenario for police by all accounts.

The 911 call was made at 9:11 AM. The police confronted the shooter at 9:23 AM. It took police a total of 11 minutes from when the call was made to when they were able to confront the shooter. This does not include the time between when the threat first made an appearance on school grounds and when the 911 call was made. That translates to over 11 minutes for the shooter to take lives and wreak havoc.

While the police response was in line with national standards, they can only respond to tragedies in progress, not prevent them. Schools that do not have effective preventative measures in place, such as armed security, will always be gambling with the lives of their students. It is an absolute necessity that schools employ effective security measures and do not fall prey to the temptations of “security theater” as this school did. The school administration thought they had taken measures, they had a plan for school shootings, they locked doors, sealed access to the school, and had even hired SEVEN security guards. None of these things prevented the shooter from getting inside the school, killing two people, and injuring several more. It is also abundantly clear through several eyewitness accounts that the shooter could have killed many more students and faculty, but chose not to.

The school and security team failed to take into consideration that the shooter could forcibly enter the building by “shooting his way in”. They failed to realize that unarmed security guards cannot stop an armed assailant. The school administration and parents decided to participate in security theater, the feeling of being secure, without having any effective security measures in place. Lives were spared on that day, not because of the actions of administrators or unarmed security personnel, but thanks to the whims of the shooter.

Any parent, teacher, or school administrator who takes the protection of their children and students seriously needs to understand that if your school lacks armed, on-site security, then your school has, in fact, no security against active shooters. It is the unfortunate reality that, according to the Crime Prevention Research Center, 94% of all mass shootings since 1950 have occurred in gun-free zones. Had the seven security guards at that school been properly trained and equipped with firearms, no innocent lives would have been lost on that day. The guards saw the shooter approaching, they locked doors, notified the authorities, and did everything else they could to inhibit the shooter, but they could not stop him. Had they been armed, they could have confronted the shooter before he attempted to make entry and neutralize him before he could threaten the lives of students. But they weren’t, and innocent people are dead because of it. 

While you couldn’t ask for more from the police, you could ask for much more from the security program at the school. Having an armed security presence at school not only empowers security professionals to stop active shootings before they even begin but also acts as a real deterrent to would-be active shooters and other criminals. This kind of security usually comes in two forms, School Resource Officers, and armed private security.

SROs have been the go-to for schools for some time now, and it’s easy to see why. Having a law enforcement officer in your schools provides, in most cases, a trained, trustworthy, and armed security presence. However, SROs have come under criticism in recent years for contributing to more arrests of students at school and subsequently struggle to form mutual trust between SROs and students. Some have criticized this tendency, calling it a “school-to-prison pipeline”. Parents and faculty can be turned off from the idea of having SROs because they don’t want their children to be overly scrutinized while at school.

Armed security professionals operate in a different capacity from SROs. While SROs are concerned with enforcing the law, security professionals are only concerned with two things: protecting lives and enforcing security-related school policies. Well-trained and armed security professionals are capable not only of being a very strong deterrent, but also of providing protection from active shooters through effective prevention, responsible use of force, and having an on-site presence.

Additionally, security professionals do not have to deal with the stigma of over-policing that can come with SROs, as they are not concerned with policing students, but rather protecting them. Students can rest easy knowing their actions are not being constantly scrutinized and that the security staff is there to help them, not make their lives harder. This not only makes them a viable option for school security but also allows them to be able to build trust with students, faculty, and parents.

Many parents can be hesitant when considering armed private security and may not know where to start when looking for a capable and trustworthy company. We strongly believe that only the best security companies with the highest standards should be considered for school protection. At HCCI Protection, we specialize in professional, trustworthy, and effective security for vulnerable communities while focusing on cultural integration. While many private security companies are willing to engage in security theater, HCCI Protection never compromises on providing real, tangible security for our clients. We always put the lives of students and faculty first. All of our security professionals are trained to the highest standards in the industry and are equipped to deal with a variety of threats, including active shooters. We strive to have our professionals integrate into the communities they serve in order to create less disruption and to keep a better pulse on the issues the community faces.

It is our opinion that parents, teachers, and administrators who take the safety of their students seriously, and who think critically about what real security entails, will find armed security to be a necessity. We stand ready to help them create effective security programs and provide security professionals with the singular purpose of protecting the most valuable asset of all, our children.

Take the first step in getting real security for your school by contacting us at 720-476-0312, info@hcciprotection.com, or visiting our website at www.hccisecurity.com.