The state of Georgia is doing something in the wake of a school shooting that is rare and can provide guidance for other states and municipalities. It is putting aside rhetoric and absolutist positions on gun possession to develop realistic bipartisan legislation that concentrates on preventative measures to advance safety.
Last September, a 14-year-old student at Apalachee High School in Winder, outside Atlanta, using a semi-automatic assault rifle shot at victims in a hallway and Algebra class, killing two students along with two teachers. Nine more were injured, seven by the gunfire.[1]
Now the legislature is forging a law that will require (among other mandates) police alerts of probable threats to educators (with some limitations to protect civil liberties), coordination of mental health services, an anonymous citizen reporting system, wearable panic buttons for school employees, and annual submission of campus maps to civic agencies.[2]
Like any law predicated on compromise, it is far from perfect. Notably absent is a provision mandating schools to set up formal threat management teams.[3] Nevertheless, the proposed legislation is an earnest attempt to actively pursue an agenda that crosses demarcations of political ideology to protect lives.
The proposal contrasts sharply with President Trump’s reply when he was questioned about the recent sudden mass assault at Florida State University.[4] After insisting that he was a “a big advocate of the Second Amendment,” he called the incident “terrible.”[5] That response is indicative of the kind of habituality that obscures sensible problem-solving and characterizes the lack of imagination of law makers and law enforcement alike. While officials debate the many facets of possible firearm restrictions, assailants continue to take aim at soft targets. Prevention, instead, given the current political reality, should focus on psychological antecedents and social interventions.
Since the Sandy Hook tragedy in 2012, when 20 children and 6 adults were killed by a sole gunman, there have been over 2,500 sudden mass assaults in every single region in the Unites States of America.[6] At the national level, Congress and the Presidency, remain mired in apparent befuddlement, at best, or servitude to lobbyists, at worst. Georgia is demonstrating that statewide and local jurisdictions can take affirmative steps that are not politically motivated, nor based on non-verifiable premises, nor necessarily high tech, nor extraordinarily costly, but simply thoughtful and action oriented.
This article was originally published on LinkedIn on April 22, 2025.
[1] Jeff Amy, “Inside the Georgia High School Where A Sleepy Morning Was Pierced by Gunfire,” Associated Press (AP), posted September 6, 2024, https://apnews.com/article/georgia-apalachee-school-shooting-2134142ff2ec2b7dc14d1e44c4f8bf74; Jeff Amy and Jeff Martin, “Teen Charged in Georgia School Shooting and His Father to Stay in Custody after Hearings,” AP, posted September 6, 2024, https://apnews.com/article/georgia-school-shooting-suspect-apalachee-high-e13b91e80c7fbefd7e3104e710afeb8d.
[2] Jeff Amy, “Georgia Lawmakers Won’t Seek Student Database after Deadly High School Shooting,” AP, posted March 27, 2025, https://apnews.com/article/georgia-apalachee-shooting-school-safety-bill-8025b5f56eaba674c192d9b7999feb72.
[3] Ibid.
[4] National Broadcasting Company (NBC) News, “Florida State Shooting: 2 Dead, Sheriff’s Deputy’s Son in Custody,” updated April 17, 2025, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/live-blog/florida-state-university-active-shooter-rcna201756; John Raby, What to Know about The Shooting at Florida State University,” AP, posted and updated April 18, 2025, https://apnews.com/article/florida-state-shooting-what-to-know-d444a6ee8f31024f83f0ee320acf7339.
[5] C-Span Video, “Trump Takes Questions from Reporters in Oval Office,” @Acyn, “Trump on FSU shooting,” X, posted April 17, 2025, https://x.com/Acyn/status/1912969572212416701; Madison E. Goldberg, “Trump on FSU Shooting that Killed 2 and Injured 6: ‘The Gun Doesn’t Do the Shooting,’” People, posted April 17, 2025, https://people.com/trump-reacts-to-deadly-florida-state-university-shooting-11717650.
[6] German Lopez, “America’s Unique Gun Violence Problem, Explained in 16 Maps and Charts,” Vox, updated April 16, 2021, https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/2/16399418/america-mass-shooting-gun-violence-statistics-charts.