Pa. Senate Panel Mulls Allowing Teachers To Carry Guns
By Tony Romeo
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- In an effort to stop mass violence in schools, a state Senate Committee has begun vetting legislation that would allow Pennsylvania teachers and school employees trained and licensed to carry guns to bring them to work.
Senators debated the idea during a hearing on allowing school employees to carry guns before the Senate Education Committee. Philadelphia Democrat Anthony Williams expressed concerns that it could have unintended consequences.
"The best of intentions can have a tragic result by shooting at someone who's unarmed by mistake," Williams said, "or shooting at someone who is armed and missing, and shooting someone else."
But the sponsor of the bill, Indiana County Republican Donald White, stressed that it would be voluntary.
"And I'm sure that any school district – even if there is only one that decides to do it – it would be an effective plan with a lot of due diligence done and a lot of pre planning done," White said.
Action on the bill is not expected in the current two-year session of the legislature that ends in November.
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