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Broward school district highlights safety enhancements at MSD commission meeting

BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. ā€“ On the second day of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Commission meeting, the focus remained on statewide school safety.

Broward County Public Schools Superintendent Howard Hepburn revealed the actions taken to protect schools in Broward County during Wednesdayā€™s meeting.

Among these actions, the district has established a Behavior Threat Assessment Department to identify high-risk students displaying concerning behavior.

Additionally, all district-issued devices now include the Safer Watch Panic Alert app, which enables school staff members and students to alert law enforcement of threats. The app can also be downloaded on personal phones.

The district has also increased layers of security by adding more fencing around schools to secure single points of entry.

The PROMISE Program, which is aimed at preventing recidivism, has been eliminated.

Starting this school year, students who bring guns to school or make threats to commit mass shootings or bomb threats will be expelled. Furthermore, weapons detection systems will be placed throughout all schools, with random weapons screenings continuing.

ā€œBroward County Public Schools is the beacon of safety across the nation,ā€ said Hepburn. ā€œWe are continuing to innovate (and) implement more safety protocols and procedures to enhance and harden our schools.ā€

Also discussed were improvements to the Guardian Program, which places highly trained professionals in schools to ensure the safety of students and staff.

A contentious topic at Wednesdayā€™s meeting was the 911 communications system for mass casualty events.

A commission member pointed out that call transfer issues during the Parkland school shooting allowed crucial minutes to pass while people were getting killed.

ā€œI am just so upset that you came up here and said there has been so much progress,ā€ said Parkland father Max Schachter when addressing Michael Ruiz, assistant county administrator for Broward County. ā€œI feel such a lack of urgency to get this fixed so this never happens again.ā€

Schachterā€™s son Alex, an MSD student, was murdered during the 2018 mass shooting.

The commission continues to seek an effective way to relay vital information and improve call rerouting between dispatch centers to ensure a quick emergency response.

Parkland father Tony Montalto, who lost his daughter Gina in the MSD shooting, called the lack of progress ā€œdisappointing and disingenuous to the victimsā€™ families.ā€

MSD Commission Chair Sheriff Bob Gualtieri also criticized Broward Countyā€™s 911 situation, stating, ā€œItā€™s no different today than it was in 2018 when you pick up a phone and call 911 for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.ā€

The Safety Commission, formed in response to the tragedy, has found that there has been no progress in unifying the separated emergency response systems.

Parkland and neighboring Coral Springs handle emergency police calls, but the Broward Sheriffā€™s Office is responsible for responding, leading to critical delays and loss of lives due to poor information transfer.

ā€œNow youā€™re telling us itā€™ll be 7-8 years before itā€™s fixedā€”I am just so upset,ā€ said Schachter.

Families affected by the tragedy and members of the commission shared their disgust and frustration upon hearing an assistant county administrator explain that contractor Motorola has yet to develop a test for a fix.

MSD Commissioner Sheriff Grady Judd criticized the situation, stating bluntly, ā€œLocal politics trumps childrenā€™s lives in this county. Period.ā€

ā€œYou seem to be very focused on the one thing we havenā€™t been able to accomplish, yet, weā€™ve made enormous progress as a whole,ā€ Ruiz responded.

Of Browardā€™s 31 cities, only a few, including Coral Springs, Coconut Creek and Plantation do not participate in the countyā€™s regional 911 system contracted through BSO. Without this integration, MSD commission members say dangers remain.

ā€œIf we canā€™t fix it politically, letā€™s bubble gum and shoelace this,ā€ said Judd.

For more assistance with the threat assessment process, please call the Behavioral Threat Assessment at 754-321-3530.


About the Authors
Joseph Ojo headshot

Joseph Ojo joined Local 10 in April 2021. Born and raised in New York City, he previously worked in Buffalo, North Dakota, Fort Myers and Baltimore.

Glenna Milberg headshot

Glenna Milberg joined Local 10 News in September 1999 to report on South Florida's top stories and community issues. She also serves as co-host on Local 10's public affairs broadcast, "This Week in South Florida."

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