Alabama Bill Would Require Law Enforcement to Participate in School Lockdown Drills
Under current law, law enforcement helps design emergency plans but doesn鈥檛 join the drill
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A state representative has filed a bill that would require schools to have regularly scheduled lockdown drills involving school resource officers and law enforcement.
The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Pebblin Warren, D-Tuskegee, would require school districts to include school resource officers and law enforcement in lockdown drills and to designate the days of drills to be 鈥渟chool safety and awareness days.鈥
Under existing law, school boards are required to have a 鈥渃omprehensive school emergency operations plan.鈥 Law enforcement personnel help develop the plan but are not required to participate in drills.
Warren said that the legislation emerged after seeing the events last May at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, when 19 fourth-graders and two teachers were killed by a gunman. Responding law enforcement for a lack of coordination and action.
鈥淲hat happened in Texas was just totally disorganization,鈥 she said. 鈥淣obody knew who was in charge. Nobody knew how to do this. Nobody knew what to do there.鈥
Warren said she wants the bill to put everyone on the same page.
鈥淚t鈥檚 working out a plan between law enforcement and the school system,鈥 Warren said. 鈥淪o, nobody will be guessing who鈥檚 in charge and what we need to do.鈥
State Superintendent Eric Mackey, via communications director Michael Sibley, said he has not yet seen the legislation. Amanda Wasden, director of external affairs at the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, said Thursday the department did not have a comment on the bill.
鈥淪tudent safety is paramount, and our members have flagged student and school safety as one of their top priorities for the coming legislative session,鈥 said Ryan Hollingsworth, executive director of the School Superintendents of Alabama, in a statement. 鈥淪SA is currently reviewing all pre-filed bills and looks forward to conversations with sponsors and stakeholders.鈥
In the Alabama State Department of Education鈥檚 Manual of State Laws and Regulations, , principals are required to instruct and train students for emergency drills and evacuations. The fire marshal requires at least one emergency drill each month. Emergency drills include but are not limited to safety, security, severe weather, fire and 鈥渃ode red drills.鈥
Code red drills can be issued 鈥渋n the event of a perceived immediate threat to a school involving acts of violence, such as terrorism, a person possessing a firearm or a deadly weapon, or any other threat of violence.鈥 Code red drills must be conducted within the first six weeks of the fall and spring semesters.
Warren said that these 鈥渟chool safety and awareness days鈥 will be days for the drills.
鈥淓verybody will be in sync with each other doing the drills, so we know how everything should pull off,鈥 she said.
The 2023 legislative session starts next Tuesday.
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