Columbine Survivor Pushes For An END To Gun-Free Zones

Colorado House Minority Leader Patrick Neville survived the school shooting at Columbine High School back in 1999.  Only a sophomore at the time, Neville is now the house minority leader in Colorado, and he wants gun-free zones eliminated.

Neville says getting rid of gun restrictions in school could have saved lives in every single school shooting to date; including Columbine. According to Fox News, he has introduced the bill annually since he was elected in 2014. The Washington Times reported that all previous attempts to eliminate gun-free zones in Colorado have been turned down.

Unfortunately, most politicians think bigger signs or banning something harder will do the trick.

Neville, a Republican, told The Times that the current law “creates a so-called gun free zone in every K-12 public school.” That essentially makes everyone a target. Right now, under Colorado law, concealed-carry permit holders may bring firearms onto school property but they must keep them locked inside their vehicles, rendering the gun useless in the event it is needed to stop a mass shooter.

“Time and time again we point to the one common theme with mass shootings, they occur in gun-free zones,” Neville said. He added law-abiding citizens should be able “to defend themselves and most importantly our children from the worst-case scenarios.”

The massacre on Valentine’s Day of last week in Florida has renewed a nationwide debate about gun violence and how to prevent mass shootings.  Most want bigger signs or more laws, but the answer could be as simple as just listening to people like Neville. Ignoring the fact that all school shootings take place in gun-free zones, where killers can pick off anyone they’d like without fear of being taken down by a good guy with a gun should be a red flag for those who demand further legislation.

Neville has contended, according to The Times, that more of his classmates would have survived the attack if faculty had been armed. In April 1999, two teens killed 12 fellow students and a teacher before killing themselves inside Columbine High School, in Littleton, Colorado.

Since gun control is not working and has not been working for a long time, maybe it’s long overdue to give people back some rights to self-defense.