Parkland Father Claims ‘Absolute Insanity’ to Let School Officers Have AR-15s for Classroom Defense

Parkland father Fred Guttenberg, an outspoken gun control proponent, claims Madison County, North Carolina’s, plan to have AR-15s for classroom defense is “absolute insanity.”

Guttenberg lost his daughter, 14-year-old Jaime, in the February 14, 2018, Parkland high school attack, in which the attacker faced zero armed resistance.

In this May 24, 2018, file photo, Fred Guttenberg speaks at a news conference in Miami next to photos of his daughter Jaime Guttenberg, who was one of 17 killed in the Valentine’s Day massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. (Wilfredo Lee, File/AP)

There have been other high-profile school shootings since Parkland in which the attackers have also had time to carry out their heinous deeds without armed resistance. On August 6, 2022, Breitbart News reported that North Carolina’s Madison County Sheriff Buddy Harwood announced he was taking steps to be sure his school officers were ready, and one of those steps meant being sure there was an AR-15 in every county school for classroom defense.

USA Today quoted Harwood saying, “Hopefully we’ll never need it, but I want my guys to be as prepared as prepared can be.”

The UK’s Guardian pointed out that Guttenberg is against Madison County’s addition of the AR-15s for classroom defense.

Guttenberg said, “I think it is absolute insanity. This won’t save a single child, or stop a single unknown and potential future act of violence.”

“However, it will immediately help to sell more guns and make this sheriff more popular with the gun lobby that he is hoping to be a champion with,” he added.

On December 13, 2018, less than a year after the Parkland attack, Breitbart News reported that the commission investigating the attack voted 13-1 to recommend arming teachers as a means of keeping students safe.

The commission was led by Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, who opposed arming teachers at the start of the investigation but changed his mind afterward due to things he learned during the investigation.

Gualtieri indicated that he went from opposing armed teachers supporting it. He noted, “People need to keep an open mind to it as the reality is that if someone else in that school had a gun it could have saved kids’ lives.”

In this June 7, 2018, file photo, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission chair and Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri gestures as he speaks during a commission meeting in Sunrise, Florida. Gualtieri says he now believes trained, volunteer teachers should have access to guns so they can stop shooters who get past other safeguards. (Wilfredo Lee, File/AP)