Upper Merion Expanding Police Presence in Schools After Conn. Shootings
By Brad Segall
UPPER MERION, Pa. (CBS) -- In the wake of the Connecticut school shooting (see related video), students in the Upper Merion Area School District will see an increased police presence at their schools for at least the remainder of the school year.
School officials and first responders met just days after a gunman opened fire inside an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., killing more than two dozen people. They talked about additional security measures that could keep students, staff, and teachers safe.
Upper Merion police chief Tom Nolan suggested greater police visibility -- not only as an extra measure of comfort but as a deterrent, "so that anybody that had any idea of doing things would know that the police were either in the building or right around the corner, about to do their random checks."
Under the program, officers will randomly patrol schools on a daily basis.
The school district has given the department key cards which will allow them access to any school in the district. Prior to the initiation of the foot patrols, the district did have some limited police presence in its buildings.
