Sununu ‘not looking to make any changes’ to N.H. gun laws after Texas school shooting

Gov. Chris Sununu stated he sees no want to change New Hampshire’s gun legal guidelines within the wake of the latest college taking pictures in Uvalde, Texas, however state officers are taking different steps to shore up the security of native college students and employees.

“Sadly, there is no such thing as a group, there is no such thing as a state that’s immune from a disaster like we noticed in Texas,” Sununu advised reporters at a Wednesday press convention. “There isn’t any legislation that’s simply going to be handed. So now we have to be preventative, now we have to be aggressive — now we have to grasp that, you recognize, deal with each child as a person, have a look at each scenario in a person method.”

Requested repeatedly whether or not he sees any room for tighter firearms legal guidelines, Sununu stated “we’re not seeking to make any modifications.” As an alternative, he pointed to different coverage responses to scale back the danger of this type of violence — like packages encouraging social and emotional abilities in colleges, and efforts to enhance constructing safety.

He additionally pointed to work completed by a college security activity drive he convened after the 2018 college taking pictures in Parkland, Florida that killed 17 folks. That panel issued a report and suggestions in 2018, however has not met since August 2020. It’s scheduled to reconvene on Thursday.

Within the final 5 years, the state has given about $28 million to colleges for infrastructure upgrades aimed toward rising safety and stopping an lively shooter from coming into the constructing. The Division of Schooling says that except more cash is appropriated, about $3.3 million stays accessible to colleges for the approaching 12 months.

The highest official on the New Hampshire Division of Security additionally stated his company is reviewing security and emergency communications plans at each New Hampshire college in mild of the Uvalde taking pictures.

“I’ll say there is not any greater precedence proper now than engaged on what we have completed and figuring out any gaps and any vulnerabilities, and guaranteeing we agency these up,” Security Commissioner Bob Quinn advised the governor and govt council throughout their Wednesday assembly.

As colleges in New Hampshire and elsewhere work to extend safety, some specialists and coverage makers are questioning whether or not this method prevents mass shootings.

Investigators in Uvalde are nonetheless inspecting what led to the taking pictures, however early studies point out that the district’s up-to-date safety plan and funding in a faculty police drive didn’t forestall the shooter from coming into the elementary college and killing 21 folks.

Shifting ahead, Sununu stated stopping future tragedies would require a “community-wide answer.”

“Are you consistently working along with your academics, your mother and father and the youngsters themselves, most significantly, to just remember to have a real understanding of what dangers is perhaps on the market, the way you’re mitigating these as greatest you’ll be able to?” he stated. “However sadly, no person’s immune.”