On Wednesday afternoon, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper signed into law legislation that could make school districts liable for certain acts of preventable violence committed against their students. How well this will work out depends on a number of factors, but at heart it is good legislation. Schools should be responsible for student safety.
The law was named after Claire Davis, a student in 2013 at Arapahoe High School in the Denver suburb of Centennial. Her killer then turned the gun on himself, which had the odd, but welcome effect of redirecting the focus of the case from retribution to prevention.
Since the 1999 Columbine massacre in a different Denver suburb, there have been three separate instances of school violence in Colorado in which students have lost their lives. The law signed by the governor would allow schools to be sued if a serious act of violence happened that could have been prevented. Plaintiffs would be eligible for up to $350,000 in damages – and could obtain investigative information.
That last may be as important as monetary damages. With damages capped at $350,000, the amount is more than enough to get the attention of a school district – but too little to make that one lawsuit a career-making event for a trial lawyer.
Getting all the relevant information, however, could make all the difference in the world to the family, the friends of the family and – perhaps, above all – to those trying to figure out how to prevent future tragedies. The Davis family, however, reported having a terrible time getting information about their daughter’s killing. That is just not right.
Critics worry, of course, about the potential cost of this legislation. Might school insurance costs increase? Will the schools get sued for every threat – real or imagined – to student safety? Are ambulance chasers already licking their chops over imagined settlements?
All those are legitimate issues. Insurance costs are always a concern. So, too, are the day-to-day operational expenses associated with what might be higher levels of staffing or security.
But some worries, too, can be overstated. We all hear tales of ridiculous lawsuits. What is not always so widely broadcast is that a great many of those go nowhere, while some prove not to be as baseless as first described. We should have a little faith in the courts; they are nowhere near as prone to silliness as sometimes imagined.
Besides, if the schools and everyone else concerned adhere to the bill’s mandate to be more open with the facts, there might be fewer threats of legal action. Openness and honesty go a long way toward dispelling suspicion.
And, yes, there will almost certainly be increased costs at some point. With that, taxpayers could still be asked to pitch in a bit more to help ensure greater safety in our schools.
Keeping taxes low is another legitimate question. But neither that, nor any of the other concerns should be seen as any more important than preventing school violence. And nobody can be expected to know better how to ensure the safety of our schools than those who best understand them.
The governor did well to sign this bill.
