DENVER—Elbert County Sheriff Shayne Heap, who has fought anti-gun legislation in the state, plans to put armed reserve officers in some county schools for the upcoming school year.
Heap has talked to several school districts that have schools in unincorporated areas of Elbert County southeast of Denver and they are onboard with the move.
The proposal comes after the school shooting in Newtown, Conn., where gunman Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 students and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Reserve officers in Elbert County work with the sheriff’s department in order to keep up their peace officer certification, but they are not on the county payroll. The reserve officers will be trained this summer then sent to selected schools.
Elbert schools Superintendent Kelli Loflin said officers sometimes drop by schools to check on security, but more protection is needed.
“I feel like our buildings are safe, but knowing they can be here and be familiar, it makes us feel much safer and gives parents a level of comfort,” Loflin said. “We’re far removed, and response times can be a little tricky.”
According to the Denver Post ( ), some schools in Colorado have school resources officers that are actual police officers and are there full time, but smaller school districts and law enforcement agencies can’t afford to have a full-time school resource officer at all schools all the time.
Dove Creek, a small school district in southwest Colorado, recently passed a measure to allow two administrators to carry guns in schools, bypassing a state law that says only peace and security officers can do so.
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Information from: The Denver Post,
