Biden To Make Active Shooter Drills in Schools Less Traumatic for Students

U.S. President Joe Biden is poised to sign an executive order on Thursday that seeks to modify active shooter drills in schools, to make them less traumatic for students while maintaining their effectiveness.

The directive will also address the need to limit technologies that facilitate the ease of use and purchase of firearms.

Curbing gun violence has been a priority for the 81-year-old president since he took office. He has often publicly reflected on the numerous victims he has consoled and the mass shooting scenes he has visited.

Biden played a key role in passing gun safety legislation and has consistently advocated for a ban on assault weapons, stricter gun regulations, and support for communities affected by violence.

His administration established the first office of gun violence prevention, led by Vice President Kamala Harris.

Both Biden and Harris are scheduled to address the ongoing gun violence crisis during an afternoon event in the Rose Garden.

The new order instructs the administration to examine the potential trauma caused by active shooter drills, aiming to help schools develop procedures that will “maximize their effectiveness and limit any collateral harms,” according to Stefanie Feldman, the director of Biden’s office of gun violence prevention.

The order will also create a task force to assess the risks associated with gun-conversion devices that can modify semiautomatic firearms into fully automatic ones, as well as the rise of 3D-printed guns, which can be easily made without serial numbers. This technology can severely complicate law enforcement tracking and hamper the investigation of crimes that may have been carried out using these weapons.

This task force is expected to deliver its findings within 90 days, just ahead of the conclusion of Biden’s term as President.

Public sentiment indicates strong support for stricter gun laws, transcending state-specific regulations. Many Americans believe that reducing the number of firearms could lead to fewer mass shootings.

Gun violence remains a pressing issue in the U.S. Recently, four people were killed and 17 injured in a shooting at a popular Birmingham, Alabama, nightlife venue, which police described as a targeted attack.

It took place in Five Points South, a district filled with entertainment venues, restaurants and bars that is often crowded on weekend nights.

The mass shooting, one of several this year in the city, left city officials pleading for help to both solve the crime and address the broader problem of gun violence.

So far this year, the U.S. has witnessed at least 31 mass killings, resulting in at least 135 deaths, excluding the shooters, according to a database compiled by The Associated Press and USA Today in collaboration with Northeastern University.

This article includes additional reporting from The Associated Press