Tennessee lawmakers pass bill to arm school teachers with guns

Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday to arm teachers with guns. The bill, which now heads to the governor’s desk, comes one year after a mass shooting at a Nashville elementary school killed six people, including three children.

Tennessee’s House of Representatives approved the measure Tuesday afternoon by a vote of 68 to 28 amid heavy security and loud protests of

“blood is on your hands” and “vote them out” in the chamber, after the state Senate approved the bill earlier in this month.

“Tennessee Republicans just cut off debate and passed a bill to arm teachers in our schools,” Democratic Rep. Justin Jones wrote Tuesday in a post on X.

“The public chanted ‘Blood on your hands!’ as the Speaker ordered troopers to clear the gallery.

This is what fascism looks like,” the lawmaker said.

HB 1202/SB 1325 would allow specially trained teachers to carry concealed handguns without parents knowing which teachers were armed.

Republican state Sen. Paul Bailey and state Rep. Ryan Williams introduced the measure, which stalled more than a year ago, to “create a deterrent” to school shootings.

“I think we need this bill,” Williams said. “It’s to create a deterrent. Because we all know the deterrent is the greatest value we can add at this point. It would be hard to keep our kids secure, because the hearts of men are broken. It’s one of these gun-free zones where people know they can take advantage of folks.”

“This is our reaction to students and teachers being murdered in a school?” countered Democratic state Rep. Bo Mitchell. “Our reaction is to throw more guns at it. What’s wrong with us?”

The bill was introduced in January 2023, more than two months before the shooting at the Covenant School, where a former student killed three 9-year-olds and three adults.

Audrey Hale reportedly fired 152 rounds from an assault rifle during the March 27, 2023, shooting that killed six people. She was killed by police.

House Democrats tried to amend the bill to allow parents to know if their child’s teacher carries a weapon, but without success.

“This bill is insane,” said Jones, who was expelled last year over what he called a Republican move to limit debate. “For God’s sake, you don’t hear. You should be ashamed. You hold our state at gunpoint. May democracy see you out of your seats.”

Under the bill, a teacher wanting to carry a gun would have to obtain a background check, undergo a psychological exam and receive written authorization from the principal, the superintendent and the head of law enforcement in the city or county concerned.

The teacher also also would have to complete 40 hours of training in school policing and 40 hours of training each year.

Several Tennessee school districts said they had no plans to arm their teachers.