Genesee County Increases Police Presence at Schools In Wake of Connecticut Tragedy

After the tragedy that took place at Newton, Connecticut's Sandy Hook Elementary School last Friday, Genesee County is taking some extra precautions to ensure the safety of our children.

MLive recently spoke with Sheriff Robert Pickell, who explained his decision to up the police presence at Flushing, Goodrich and Fenton Schools. "It was meant to provide an added sense of safety for parents and students," explained Pickell. "We wanted to reinforce that school is safe for the children. We had our car near the elementary schools, in sight but not obtrusive. Where kids could see and get a feeling of safety that someone was there."

While this was an understandable and compassionate move on the part of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, you have to wonder what the long term solution is. There are simply not enough police in the county to begin with, let alone enough to have one at every school. So how do we ensure that our children are safe at school?

Yesterday, Cass City Public Schools -- just 60 miles to the northeast -- sent their students on Holiday break three days early after a student made threats about shooting up the school. Luckily the situation was handled before it turned into a more serious one.

The Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy has raised all kinds of concerns regarding the safety of our children. Is gun control the answer or is this an issue of monitoring the mental health of young people more closely? Do we put more police in schools or do we put more religion in schools? Unfortunately, there is probably no miracle fix for these problems.

How Should We Prevent Incidents Like the Tragedy in Newton, CT?