Seminar shows parents, teachers how to prevent shootings in school

A pair of safety presentations here last Thursday drew parents and teachers, who listened to accounts of youth aged 11-18 across North America who have killed one or more schoolmates.
The presentation by OPP Det. Sgt. Jim Van Allen was a riveting one as he went through 19 pages of letters, literature, and drawings done by U.S. students before they brought guns to school and shot other children.
The presentation was held to help prevent similar violence from taking place in local schools by alerting parents, students, and teachers to recognize indicators found among potentially violent people.
“The real issue is public safety. Schools, teachers, and parents have a moral right to prevent violence,” said Det. Sgt. Van Allen.
Because of a rise in school shootings in the U.S. over the past few years, he has been travelling across the country alerting those who attend his seminars about the reasons for this violence in order to enable them to spot potential problems and put a stop to them.
“Parents are the first teachers. It’s up to them to teach morals, values, and monitor the activities of the children,” he said.
Det. Sgt. Van Allen listed a number of incidents in which the children involved in violent crimes were going through with preparations that should have been obvious to their parents.
He listed children being gone at all hours, and one boy even building a pipe bomb in the middle of his garage.
“Gee, I think this is something mom or dad should see,” he said.
But the most common problem was the easy access children have to their parents’ firearms.
“Sixteen to 18 incidents that occurred were with legal weapons in the home,” he said. “Overwhelmingly it’s the rifles and shotguns. If parents only do one thing, I would ask that they ensure their guns are secure.”
Det. Sgt. Van Allen presented pictures of ordinary-looking children being led away in handcuffs after committing murder. Then he discussed the common traits found among them.
He also displayed letters from young American killers that were about hate, pain, and death. He displayed drawings of skulls and stick figures spouting blood or shooting one another, and comic books with half-naked women holding bloodied swords on the front cover.
Det. Sgt. Van Allen said any one of these might not mean a child has the potential to be a killer but it is a sign of some distress. And if many similar items are found with a student, he or she should be sent for help.
“I could be wrong 28 percent of the times but I’d say if there’s risk, we better act rather than to not act and the worst scenario happens,” he noted.
He stressed all of the latest U.S. incidents demonstrated planning–good news because that means there’s time to prevent them if the warning signs are recognized.
The seminar also included some advice on how to prepare schools for shooting incidents and how to find help for children who are entertaining violence.