Legislation calling for the creation of an Amber Alert style active shooter communication network is being passed in the House.
The Active Shooter Alert Act passed this evening in a 260 to 169 vote, with support from 43 Republicans.
The measure has been endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police and the National Police Foundation.
The bill was authored by Congressman David Cicilline:
“Mass shootings have become ubiquitous – so frequent that some of these horrific events barely make headlines – but we cannot become numb to these events. This is not the time to settle for the status quo – we need to act now to make our communities safer, and that means providing law enforcement with resources they need. During active shooter events, law enforcement officers are having to take to social media to communicate with the surrounding community so that no one accidentally walks into the line of fire – this is terribly inefficient and dangerous. Law enforcement needs and deserves better tools than Twitter to communicate with the community and the Active Shooter Alert Act answers that call. This will help ensure that every single Rhode Islander will be better able to keep themselves and their families safe from gun violence,” said Congressman Cicilline.
If passed by the Senate, the measure would authorize the Department of Justice to become the national coordinator of the communications network.
That network would alert people whenever there's an active shooting in their community.
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