This fall, some schools in California will be distributing a “Firearms Safety Fact Sheet” to help educate parents and guardians with tips and guidelines about how to safely store weapons, discuss guns with their kids, and guide them in their use of imitation firearms.
The move to create the fact sheet by the Sonoma County Board of Education reportedly follows the death of 13-year-old Andy Lopez, according to the Press Democrat. Lopez was shot by a sheriff’s deputy when the pellet gun he was carrying was mistaken for an AK-47 assault rifle. He had removed the orange tip that was meant to distinguish it from real weapons.
A copy of the fact sheet can be found here.
“We wanted to keep the politics out of it. This is all about information, safety for kids,” said Sonoma County Board of Education member Gina Cuclis, the Press Democrat notes.
Although the fact sheet does not make mention of Lopez’s shooting death, it does state that between 1991 and 2011, 58 children and teens from Sonoma County died of firearm-related homicides, suicides, and accidents.
“We decided we have the resources, we have the ability to reach a lot ofpeople, and if we can save one life, it’s so worth it,” said Sonoma County Boardwoman Kathleen Willbanks.
Some other school districts that will be distributing the fact sheet to students include the Roseland School District, Mark West Union School District, Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District, and West Sonoma County High School district. Santa Rosa City Schools are reportedly still considering how they intend to use the fact sheet.
Petaluma City School has reportedly decided not to distribute it at all, the Press Democrat notes.
In May, 22-year-old self-proclaimed “miserable virgin” Elliot Rodger took the wrath of his loneliness out on six victims — three of whom he stabbed to death and another three whom he shot, in addition to wounding four people by running them over with his vehicle — in Santa Barbara.
On Sunday, a 15-year-old high school student was arrested for allegedly posting gun-related death threats on social media site Instagram targeting women and minorities, according to the Los Angeles Times. Authorities reportedly arrested the unnamed teen after they conducted a search of his home. No weapons were found.
Some of the posts, which have since been deleted, included “Valencia High School has been nominated to be shot up first,” and “We are aiming our guns mostly at high school students… blood will be shed and families will suffer,” the Times notes.
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