Editing School shooting (section)

==By region==
{{Main|List of school-related attacks}}

===United States===
[[File:Us-school-shooting-data-by-decade-1900-2019.png|thumb|350px|right|Frequency of school shootings in the USA by decade from 1900 through 2010. Data source: Wikipedia]]

{{See also|Gun violence in the United States|Gun violence in U.S. schools}}
{{main|List of school shootings in the United States (before 2000)|List of school shootings in the United States (2000–present)|List of school shootings in the United States by death toll}}

School shootings are an "overwhelmingly American" phenomenon due to the availability of firearms in the United States.<ref name=nyr20151019>{{cite news |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |author-link=Malcolm Gladwell |first=Malcolm |last=Gladwell |title=Thresholds of Violence, How school shootings catch on |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/10/19/thresholds-of-violence |date=October 19, 2015 |access-date=April 1, 2017 |quote=School shootings are a modern phenomenon. There were scattered instances of gunmen or bombers attacking schools in the years before Barry Loukaitis, but they were lower profile. School shootings mostly involve young white men. And, not surprisingly, given the ready availability of firearms in the United States, the phenomenon is overwhelmingly American.}}</ref> Children at U.S. schools have active shooter drills.<ref name="shooter drills">{{cite news |title=My school's lockdown drills, active shooter training are security theater. Yours are, too. |url=https://eu.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2019/05/23/teachers-active-shooter-trainings-ineffective-stressful-column/3754113002/ |access-date=August 6, 2019 |work=USA Today}}</ref> According to ''USA Today'', in 2019 "about 95% of public schools now have students and teachers practice huddling in silence, hiding from an imaginary gunman."<ref name="shooter drills"/>

[[File:Names of Columbine shooting victims at School Walkout against gun violence (40877520474).jpg|Columbine shooting victims at School Walkout against gun violence|thumb|right|244x244px]] 
Between the 1999 [[Columbine High School massacre]] in [[Colorado]] and the 2012 [[Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting]] in [[Connecticut]], there were 31 school shootings in the United States and 14 in the rest of the world combined.<ref name=postmedia20121214/> Between 2000 and 2010, counting incidents from 37 countries in which someone was injured or killed on school grounds, with two or more victims, and not counting "single homicides, off-campus homicides, killings caused by government actions, militaries, terrorists or militants", the number of such incidents in the United States was one less than in the other 36 countries combined; in the vast majority of the United States incidents, perpetrators used guns.<ref name=quartz20121214/><ref>{{cite news |title=This is how common school shootings are in America |newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |agency=[[The Washington Post]] |date=February 18, 2018 |access-date=May 19, 2018 |first=Amanda |last=Erickson |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-america-school-shootings-20180215-story.html}}</ref>

Tracking school shootings in the United States was made more difficult by the passage by [[United States Congress]] of the [[Dickey Amendment]] in 1996, which mandated that no [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] funds "may be used to advocate or promote gun control", although this does not mean the CDC has stopped researching gun violence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/nvdrs/index.html|title=National Violent Death Reporting System{{!}}NVDRS{{!}}Violence Prevention{{!}}Injury Center{{!}}CDC|date=September 19, 2018|website=cdc.gov|access-date=November 2, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/sosmap/firearm_mortality/firearm.htm|title=Stats of the States – Firearm Mortality|date=May 1, 2018|website=cdc.gov|access-date=November 2, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/youthviolence/schoolviolence/index.html|title=About School Violence|date=November 1, 2018|website=cdc.gov|access-date=November 2, 2018}}</ref> Instead, Congress relies on independent research done by non-partisan organizations for getting data on gun violence in the United States.{{citation needed|date=January 2025}}

Between the Columbine massacre and the [[Santa Fe High School shooting]] in [[Texas]], shooting of some form happened at 216 schools, and at least 141 children, educators and other people were killed and another 284 were injured. 38% of the students who experienced school shootings were [[African American]] although African American students were 16.6% of the school population.<ref name="wapo20180518">{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/local/school-shootings-database/|title=School shootings|last1=Woodrow Cox|first1=John|date=May 18, 2018|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=May 18, 2018|last2=Rich|first2=Steven|last3=Chiu|first3=Allyson|last4=Muyskens|first4=John|last5=Ulmanu|first5=Monica}}</ref> Schools in at least 36 states and the [[Washington, D.C.|District of Columbia]] have experienced a shooting.<ref name="wapo20180325">{{cite news |last1=Woodrow Cox |first1=John |last2=Rich |first2=Steven |date=March 25, 2018 |title=Scarred by school shootings |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/local/us-school-shootings-history/ |access-date=May 20, 2018 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>

Many school shootings in the United States result in one non-fatal injury.<ref name=time20180222>{{cite news |title=This Chart Shows the Number of School Shooting Victims Since Sandy Hook |first=Chris |last=Wilson |date=February 22, 2018 |access-date=May 21, 2018 |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |url=https://time.com/5168272/how-many-school-shootings/}}</ref> The type of firearm most commonly used in school shootings in the United States is the [[handgun]]. Three school shootings (the Columbine massacre, the Sandy Hook massacre, and the 2018 [[Stoneman Douglas High School shooting|Parkland High School shooting]] in Florida), accounted for 43% of the fatalities; the type of firearm used in the most lethal school shootings was the [[rifle]].<ref name=wapo20180325/> [[High-capacity magazine]]s, which allow the perpetrator to fire dozens of rounds without having to reload, were used in the Columbine and Sandy Hook shootings.<ref>{{cite news |title=Why are US mass shootings getting more deadly? |first=Tara |last=McKelvey |agency=[[BBC News]] |date=November 7, 2017 |access-date=May 21, 2018 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41890277}}</ref>

70% of the perpetrators of school shootings were under the age of 18, with the median age of 16. More than 85% of the perpetrators of school shootings obtained their firearms from their own homes or from friends or relatives.<ref name=wapo20180518/> Targeted school shootings, those occurring for example in the context of a feud, were about three times as common as those that appeared indiscriminate. Most perpetrators of school shootings exhibited no signs of debilitating [[mental disorder]], such as [[psychosis]] or [[schizophrenia]], although most mass killers typically have or exhibit signs of depression. On the other hand, [[Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold|Eric Harris]] was almost certainly a psychopath as noted by the FBI.<ref name=wapo20180325/> Between the Columbine massacre and 2015, "more than 40 people" were "charged with Columbine-style plots;" almost all were white male teenagers and almost all had studied the Columbine attack or cited the Columbine perpetrators [[Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold]] as inspiration.<ref name=cnn20151103>{{cite news |first = Wayne |last = Drash |title = The massacre that didn't happen |publisher = [[CNN]] |date = November 3, 2015 |access-date = April 2, 2017 |url = http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/03/us/minnesota-foiled-school-massacre-john-ladue/index.html |quote = The suspects are almost always white male teenagers who have studied the Colorado high school massacre or cite the killers as inspiration. In the 16 years since the attack in Littleton, Colorado, more than 40 people have been charged with Columbine-style plots, according to searches of news accounts. |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170402011921/http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/03/us/minnesota-foiled-school-massacre-john-ladue/index.html |archive-date = April 2, 2017 |df = mdy-all }}</ref>

At least 68 schools that experienced a school shooting employed a police officer or security guard; in all but a few, the shooting ended before any intercession. Security guards or resource officers were present during four of the five school shooting incidents with the highest number of dead or injured: Columbine, the 2001 [[Santana High School shooting]] in [[California]], the [[2018 Marshall County High School shooting]] in Kentucky, and Stoneman Douglas.<ref name=wapo20180325/><ref name=huffpo20131205/>

There were 11 firearm-related events that occurred at a school or campus in the first 23 days of 2018.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 24, 2018 |title=A Look At All 11 School Shootings That Took Place In The First 23 Days Of 2018|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/01/24/580433745/a-look-at-all-11-school-shootings-that-took-place-in-the-first-23-days-of-2018|work=[[NPR]] |access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref> As of May 2018, more people, including students and teachers, were killed in 2018 in schools in the United States than were killed in military service for the United States, including both combat and non-combat military service, according to an analysis by ''[[The Washington Post]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=2018 has been deadlier for schoolchildren than service members |first=Philip |last=Bump |date=May 18, 2018 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=May 20, 2018 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2018/05/18/2018-has-been-deadlier-for-schoolchildren-than-service-members/ |quote=More people have been killed at schools this year than have been killed while serving in the military.}}</ref><ref name=nydn20180518>{{cite news |title=This year has been deadlier for American students than American military members |first=Chris |last=Sommerfeldt |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]] |date=May 18, 2018 |access-date=May 19, 2018 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/year-deadlier-american-students-troops-article-1.3997382 |quote=More people have been murdered in schools so far this year than have been killed while serving in the U.S. military, according to depressing statistics...The number of individual school shootings is also much higher this year, with 16 deadly incidents across the country so far. Last year, there had been four fatal school shootings during the same period.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=More people have died in schools than military service members in 2018: report |first=Morgan |last=Gstalter |date=May 18, 2018 |newspaper=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]] |access-date=May 19, 2018 |quote=A new analysis by The Washington Post found that more people have been killed at schools so far in 2018 than have been killed while serving in the U.S. military, based on data from Defense Department news releases. |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/news/388375-more-people-have-died-in-schools-than-service-members-in-2018-report/}}</ref> In terms of the year-to-date number of individual deadly school shootings incidents in the United States, early 2018 was much higher than 2017, with 16 in 2018 and four in 2017, through May;<ref name=nydn20180518/> the year-to-day through May number of incidents was the highest since 1999.<ref name=wapo20180518/> As of May 2018, thirteen school shootings took place on [[K–12]] school property in 2018 that resulted in firearm-related injuries or deaths, including 32 killed and 65 injured, according to ''[[Education Week]]''.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Evie |last1=Blad |first2=Holly |last2=Peele |first3=Stacey |last3=Decker |first4=Hyon-Young |last4=Kim |newspaper=[[Education Week]] |title=School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where |url=https://www.edweek.org/ew/section/multimedia/school-shootings-this-year-how-many-and-where.html |date=May 21, 2018 |access-date=May 21, 2018}}</ref><ref name=atlantic20180214>{{cite news |title=Another School Shooting—But Who's Counting? |first=Isabel |last=Fattal |date=February 14, 2018 |access-date=May 21, 2018 |magazine=[[The Atlantic]] |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/02/another-school-shootingbut-whos-counting/553412/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Recent school shootings in the US |first1=Madeline |last1=Farber |first2=Zoe |last2=Szathmary |agency=[[Fox News]] |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/recent-school-shootings-in-the-us/ |date=May 19, 2018 |access-date=May 21, 2018}}</ref> 22 school shootings where someone was hurt or killed occurred in the United States in the first 20 weeks of 2018, according to [[CNN]].<ref>{{cite news |title=There has been, on average, 1 school shooting every week this year |first1=Saeed |last1=Ahmed |first2=Christina |last2=Walker |agency=[[CNN]] |date=May 18, 2018 |access-date=May 21, 2018 |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/02/us/school-shootings-2018-list-trnd/index.html}}</ref>

====List of school shootings in the United States====
{{Main|List of school shootings in the United States (before 2000)|List of school shootings in the United States (2000–present)|List of school shootings in the United States by death toll}}

As of May 22, 2023, the ten deadliest school shootings in the United States since the 1999 [[Columbine High School massacre]] in [[Colorado]] in which 14 were killed were the:

* 2007 [[Virginia Tech shooting]] (33 dead)
* 2012 [[Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting]] in [[Newtown, Connecticut]] (27 dead)
* 2022 [[Robb Elementary School shooting]] in [[Uvalde, Texas]] (22 dead)
* 2018 [[Parkland high school shooting|Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting]] in [[Parkland, Florida]] (17 dead)
* 2018 [[Santa Fe High School shooting]] in Texas (10 dead)
* [[2015 Umpqua Community College shooting]] near [[Roseburg, Oregon]] (10 dead)
* 2005 [[Red Lake shootings]] in [[Minnesota]] (10 dead)
* [[2023 Nashville school shooting]] in [[Nashville, Tennessee]] (7 dead)
* [[2012 Oikos University shooting]] in [[Oakland, California]] (7 dead)
* 2008 [[Northern Illinois University shooting]] (6 dead)

Other school shootings occurring in the United States include the 1966 [[University of Texas tower shooting]] in [[Austin, Texas|Austin]] in which 16 were killed; the [[2024 Apalachee High School shooting]] in [[Winder, Georgia]], in which four were killed; the 2001 [[Santana High School shooting]] in [[Santee, California]], in which two were killed; the [[2018 Marshall County High School shooting]] in [[Benton, Kentucky]], in which two were killed; and the [[2021 Oxford High School shooting]] in [[Oxford Township, Michigan]], in which four were killed.<ref name=time20180222/><ref>{{cite news |work=[[Reuters]] |date=February 14, 2018 |title=Factbox: Major school shootings in the United States |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-shooting-masskillings-factbox/factbox-major-school-shootings-in-the-united-states-idUSKCN1FY31I |access-date=May 22, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Since Sandy Hook, a gun has been fired on school grounds nearly once a week |first=Priya |last=Krishnakumar |date=May 18, 2018 |access-date=May 22, 2018 |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-na-school-shootings-since-newtown/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=November 30, 2021|title=Oxford High School shooting: 4 students dead, 8 hurt including 1 teacher|publisher=[[WJBK]]|url=https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/oxford-high-school-locked-down-due-to-active-emergency-oakland-county-sheriff-on-scene|access-date=November 30, 2021}}</ref>

====Studies of United States school shootings====
During 1996, the CDC ([[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]]) together with the [[US Department of Education]] and the [[United States Department of Justice]], published a review of deaths related to schools occurring as a result of violence, including explicitly "unintentional firearm-related death", for the academic years 1992–1993 and 1993–1994.<ref>[https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=School-associated%20violent%20deaths%20in%20the%20United%20States%2C%201992%20to%201994.&author=SP%20Kachur&author=G%20Stennies&author=K%20Powell&publication_year=&journal=JAMA.&volume=&pages= SP Kachur, GM Stennies, KE Powell, W Modzeleski (1996)] (sourced from Anderson; Kaufman; Simon 2001) Accessed February 24, 2018</ref> A second study (Anderson; Kaufman; Simon 2001), a continuation from the 1996 study, was published December 5, and covered the period 1994–1999.<ref>M. Anderson; J. Kaufman; T.R. Simon (December 5, 2001)- [https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/194436 School-Associated Violent Deaths in the United States, 1994–1999] [[JAMA (journal)|Journal of the American Medical Association]] 2001;286(21):2695–2702. doi:10.1001/jama.286.21.2695 Accessed February 24, 2018</ref>

A [[United States Secret Service]] study concluded that schools were placing false hope in physical security, when they should be paying more attention to the pre-attack behaviors of students. Zero-tolerance policies and metal detectors "are unlikely to be helpful," the Secret Service researchers found. The researchers focused on questions concerning the reliance on SWAT teams when most attacks are over before police arrive, profiling of students who show warning signs in the absence of a definitive profile, expulsion of students for minor infractions when expulsion is the spark that push some to return to school with a gun, buying software not based on school shooting studies to evaluate threats although killers rarely make direct threats, and reliance on metal detectors and police officers in schools when shooters often make no effort to conceal their weapons.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |url=http://powerreporting.com/files/shoot.pdf |title=Deadly Lessons: School Shooters Tell Why |date=October 15–16, 2000 |access-date=April 8, 2006}}</ref>

In May 2002, the Secret Service published a report that examined 37 U.S. school shootings. They had the following findings:
* Incidents of targeted violence at school were rarely sudden, impulsive acts.
* Prior to most incidents, other people knew about the attacker's idea or plan to attack.
* Most attackers did not threaten their targets directly prior to advancing the attack.
* There is no accurate or useful profile of students who engaged in targeted school violence.
* Most attackers engaged in some behavior prior to the incident that caused others concern or indicated a need for help.
* Most attackers had difficulty coping with significant losses or personal failures. Moreover, many had considered or attempted suicide.
* Many attackers felt bullied, persecuted, or injured by others prior to the attack.
* Most attackers had access to and had used weapons prior to the attack.
* In many cases, other students were involved in some capacity.
* Despite prompt law enforcement responses, most shooting incidents were stopped by means other than law enforcement intervention.<ref>{{cite book |last=Vossekuil |first=B |author2=Fein R|author3=Reddy M|author4=Borum R|author5=Modzeleski W |title=The Final Report and Findings of the Safe School Initiative: Implications for the Prevention of School Attacks in the United States |url=http://www.treas.gov/usss/ntac/ssi_final_report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030617182534/https://www.treasury.gov/usss/ntac/ssi_final_report.pdf |archive-date=June 17, 2003 |access-date=March 1, 2018 |publisher=U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program and U.S. Secret Service |location=National Threat Assessment Center, Washington, D.C. |year=2002}}</ref>

==== Cultural references ====

==== Film ====
There have been many representations of American school shootings in films and TV shows produced by both United States and international production companies. While films ''[[Elephant (2003 film)|Elephant]]'', ''[[We Need to Talk About Kevin (film)|We Need to Talk about Kevin]]'', ''[[Beautiful Boy (2010 film)|Beautiful Boy]]'', and ''[[Mass (2021 film)|Mass]]'' are solely focused on the either the act or the aftermath,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Latif|first=Leila|date=January 18, 2022|title=Mass and the films trying to make sense of senseless violence|url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20220118-the-films-trying-to-make-sense-of-senseless-violence|access-date=January 19, 2022|website=www.bbc.com|language=en}}</ref> many of the shows such as ''[[Criminal Minds]]'', ''[[Degrassi: The Next Generation|Degrassi: the Next Generation]]'', ''[[Law & Order (franchise)|Law and Order]]'', and ''[[One Tree Hill (TV series)|One Tree Hill]]'' investigate the crime for an episode or use it as a plot point for about half a season.<ref>{{Cite web|date=April 15, 2013|title=School Shootings: When TV Depicts the Unthinkable|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/gallery/school-shootings-tv-depicts-unthinkable-439402/|access-date=January 19, 2022|website=The Hollywood Reporter|language=en-US}}</ref>

==== Music ====
One of the more provocative songs to come out of the Parkland, Florida high school shooting was "thoughts & prayers" from alternative artist/rapper [[Grandson (musician)|grandson]] (born Jordan Benjamin).<ref name="Billboard">{{Cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/8285184/grandson-signs-with-fueled-by-ramen-following-his-powerful-post|title=Grandson Signs With Fueled By Ramen Following His Powerful Post-Parkland Theme, 'Thoughts & Prayers'|magazine=Billboard|access-date=August 10, 2018}}</ref> The song is a critique of politicians sending out their "[[thoughts and prayers]]" to the victims of the [[Parkland high school shooting]] and other mass shootings, accompanied by what he perceives as a consistent resistance to gun control laws.<ref name="Billboard"/>

"[[I Don't Like Mondays]]" by Irish new wave band [[The Boomtown Rats]] was directly inspired by the [[Cleveland Elementary School shooting (San Diego)|1979 Cleveland Elementary School shooting]].

====Political impact====
School shootings and other mass killings have had a major political impact. Governments have discussed gun-control laws, to increase time for background checks. Also, bulletproof school supplies have been created, including backpacks,<ref name="bul">{{cite web
| title=Bulletproof school supplies get low grades from safety experts
| website=[[NBC News]]
| date=August 21, 2013
| url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/bulletproof-school-supplies-get-low-grades-safety-experts-v20107023
| access-date=March 23, 2014
| url-status=dead
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140323164636/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/bulletproof-school-supplies-get-low-grades-safety-experts-v20107023
| archive-date=March 23, 2014
| df=mdy-all
}}
</ref> desks, bullet-resistant door panels,<ref name=bul/> and classroom whiteboards (or bulletin boards) which reinforce walls or slide across doors to deflect bullets.<ref>{{cite web
| title=How bulletproof whiteboards can protect classrooms
| agency=MSN.com
| date=September 16, 2013
| url=http://money.msn.com/now/post--how-bulletproof-whiteboards-can-protect-classrooms?ref=bfv
| type=sliding across doors
| access-date=March 23, 2014
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140323170316/http://money.msn.com/now/post--how-bulletproof-whiteboards-can-protect-classrooms?ref=bfv
| archive-date=March 23, 2014
| url-status=dead
}}</ref> The [[National Rifle Association of America]] has proposed allowing teachers to carry weapons on school grounds as a means of protecting themselves and others as a possible solution.<ref>{{cite web |title=NRA School Safety Report Recommends Arming Teachers, Loosening Gun Laws |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nra-school-safety-report_n_2999968 |author1=Christina Wilkie |website=Huffington Post |access-date=September 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928100443/https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nra-school-safety-report_n_2999968 |archive-date=September 28, 2022 |language=English |date=February 4, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=NRA School Shield |url=https://www.nraschoolshield.org/ |website=NRA School Shield |publisher=National Rifle Association of America |access-date=September 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170623015458/https://www.nraschoolshield.org/ |archive-date=June 23, 2017 |language=English |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, 14 states had at least one school district in which teachers were armed, with another 16 states permitting districts to arm teachers subject to local policy.<ref>{{cite web |title=Here's all the states where teachers already carry guns in the classroom |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/teachers-armed-guns-classroom-state-laws/ |author1=Tess Owen |website=Vice News |publisher=Vice Media Group |access-date=September 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028151544/https://www.vice.com/en/article/ywq8b5/teachers-armed-guns-classroom-state-laws |archive-date=October 28, 2020 |language=English |date=March 10, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> Most states also require the gun carriers to receive advance permission from the districts' superintendents or trustees. "In New York State, written permission from the school is required in order to carry a firearm on school grounds."<ref>{{cite web|title=Teachers with Guns: Firearms Discharges by Schoolteachers, 1980–2012 |url=http://homicidecenter.org/publication/teachers-with-guns-examining-a-policy-intervention/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401025348/http://homicidecenter.org/publication/teachers-with-guns-examining-a-policy-intervention/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 1, 2017 |format=PDF |agency=Homicidecenter.org |page=1 |date=August 2013 }}</ref>

Due to the political impact, this has spurred some to press for more stringent [[gun control]] laws. In the United States, the National Rifle Association is opposed to such laws, and some groups have called for fewer gun control laws, citing cases of armed students ending shootings and halting further loss of life, and claiming that the prohibitions against carrying a gun in schools do not deter the gunmen.<ref name="lab1">{{cite web |first=Eric |last=Puryear |url=http://www.learnaboutguns.com/2008/04/30/the-flawed-reasoning-behind-gun-free-zones/ |title=A discussion of the reasoning behind gun free zone, 2007–2008 |date=April 30, 2008 |access-date=May 4, 2012}}</ref>{{better source needed|reason=pro-gun website is source, not objective.|date=December 2012}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bmsg.org/resources/publications/issue-8-the-debate-on-gun-policies-in-US-and-midwest-newspapers|title=Issue 8: The debate on gun policies in U.S. and midwest newspapers – Berkeley Media Studies Group|website=Bmsg.org}}</ref> One such example is the [[Mercaz HaRav Massacre]], where the attacker was stopped by a student, Yitzhak Dadon, who shot him with his personal firearm which he lawfully carried concealed. At a [[Appalachian School of Law shooting|Virginia law school]], there is a disputed claim that three students retrieved pistols from their cars and stopped the attacker without firing a shot.<ref>Clines, Francis. "3 Slain at Law School; Student Is Held". New York Times. January 17, 2002.</ref> Also, at [[1997 Pearl High School shooting|a Mississippi high school]], the vice principal retrieved a firearm from his vehicle and then eventually stopped the attacker as he was driving away from the school.<ref>Wickman, Forrest. "Do Armed Citizens Stop Mass Shootings?" Slate. December 18, 2012.</ref> In other cases, such as shootings at Columbine and Red Lake High Schools, the presence of an armed police officer did little to nothing to prevent the killings.<ref name=huffpo20131205>{{cite news |last=Terkel |first=Amanda |title=Columbine High School Had Armed Guard During Massacre In 1999 |work=[[HuffPost]] |date=December 5, 2013 |access-date=May 21, 2018 |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/21/columbine-armed-guards_n_2347096.html}}</ref>

[[Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994|The Gun-Free Schools Act]] was passed in 1994 in response to gun related violence in schools, so many school systems started adopting the Zero-Tolerance Law. The Gun-Free Schools Act required people to be expelled from the school for a year. By 1997, the Zero-Tolerance for any type of weapon was implemented by more than 90 percent of U.S. public schools.<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2000031000&type=hitlist&num=0#.UnxPbvmshcY|title=Zero Tolerance for School Violence|journal=CQ Researcher by CQ Press|date=March 10, 2000 |volume=10 |issue=9 |pages=185–208 |access-date=May 22, 2018 |last1=Koch |first1=Kathy }}</ref>

=== Brazil ===
{{Main|List of school attacks in Brazil}}

In Brazil, school shootings and similar attacks, usually involving melee weapons or improvised explosives, have been on the rise  since 2022.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Henrique Roza |first=Thiago |last2=de Borba Telles |first2=Lisieux Elaine |date=May 2024 |title=The rise of school shootings and other related attacks in Brazil |url=https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanam/article/PIIS2667-193X(24)00051-6/fulltext |journal=[[The Lancet]] |volume=33}}</ref> Multiple potential explanations exist, including the glorification of American mass murderers leading to a [[Copycat crime|copycat]] "globalization" of such incidents, with the perpetrators often seeking to replicate American attacks. For example, Wellington Menezes de Oliveira, the perpetrator of the [[Rio de Janeiro school shooting]], cited [[Seung-Hui Cho]] as a "brother" and thanked him, along with fellow Brazilian Edmar Aparecido Freitas, perpetrator of the 2003 [[Taiúva school shooting]], for their "bravery" and "leading the way".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-04-16 |title=Killer was 'inspired' |url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/killer-was-inspired-20110416-1dijz.html |access-date=2024-04-04 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en}}</ref> Other theories include the spread of conspiracy theories, hate speech and extremist propaganda.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Langlois |first=Jill |date=2023-04-16 |title=Attacks on Brazil's schools — often by former students — spur a search for solutions |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/04/11/1168233536/a-rise-in-attacks-on-schools-has-left-brazil-reeling-and-searching-for-solutions |access-date=2024-12-16 |website=NPR}}</ref>