erniefreeman's Blog

     The federal Gun-Free Schools Act requires states to compell local districts to expell students who are caught bringing guns to school, keep records of the expulsions and report the data to the U.S. Department of Education.  The last year I could find comprehensive data was for school year 2003/2004.  That year Tennessee expelled 62 students who brought guns to school.  Guess which state had the highest rate of expulsions (per 1,000 students).  Utah.  Eighty four kids were expelled for briging weapons to school in Utah that year, a state with half the number of K-12 students as Tennessee.

     The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there are 135,000 guns in U.S. schools daily.  For the entire academic year 03/04, Education reports a total of 2,165 students being expelled nationwide for bringing a weapon to school.  That leaves roughly 133,000 guns in schools every single day.  Think about what that suggests: Many school districts don't use metal detectors, or the equipment doesn't work, or the vast majority of K-12 students are responsible gun owners.

  In Memphis, a school system spokesman told me today (Tuesday) only one gun had been confiscated in the first one hundred days of this school year.  If those CDC statistics are correct, we can reasonably conclude more guns are floating around in Memphis City Schools.  Students are packing heat.  We can also reasonably conclude, based on the government reports, that students are packing in Covington and Collierville too.  But since the recent shcool shootings have happened in Memphis, the question before the community, the school board and on the Superintendent's desk is what do we do about school security?  Do we conduct mandatory daily metal detector checks, the Kenneth Whalum option?  Or do we leave security to the Principal of each school, the Martavius Jones  and Dan Ward option? 

     There are many considerations; time, cost, effectiveness, just to name three.  To be sure, there are other issues school system leaders have not shared with us.  And, as it relates to school safety and the best course of action to secure our schools,  school system leaders have been something short of completely honest with us.  That is a fact. 

     In tonight's report on Fox-13 News at Nine, the I-Team will share with you some of the things the system does not want you to know.  The operative word in that sentence is some.  Because these people are so determined to put a "happy face" on tragic incidents, it's hard to figure out what they really think about anyting.  And often what they say contradicts what they said days, hours or just minutes prior.

     When our children are faced with potential dangers at school, is it too much to ask that our school leaders just tell the truth?