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Parkland victim’s mother pushes for panic buttons in schools
Evan Axelbank reports
TAMPA, Fla. - An effort is underway to install panic buttons in all of Florida's public schools.
It would be called Alyssa's Law, a measure being pushed by the family of Parkland shooting victim Alyssa Alhadeff, who was 14-years-old when she was killed at Marjory Stoneman-Douglas High School.
Though Lori Alhadeff acknowledges a faster response would not have saved her daughter, she says the kids who were killed on a higher floor could have been.
The call first went out as a fire-rescue response, as opposed to a call for help from police.
The so-called Parkland Report said officers in the jurisdiction, who were across the street, were not made aware of the shooting for several minutes.
Under Alyssa's Law, one push of a panic button, which would have to be installed in every public school, would immediately summon law enforcement, send GPS coordinates, and allow messages to be sent. Accompanying bills have been filed in the state House and Senate.
"Every second counts. We need to make sure that the agency that is going to respond gets that message that there is an active shooter on campus," Alhadeff said. "Alyssa would have wanted to save lives. She had the biggest heart."
Some Bay Area districts are moving ahead anyway. Hillsborough County school personnel will train in January with new ID badges that staffers can push to bring 911, give locations, and start a lockdown.
Sarasota schools will activate a panic button app this spring.
A panic button company called Rave Mobile Safety says nearly 600 schools in 15 Florida counties have contracted with them.
Alyssa's Law has been passed in New Jersey, which is where her family is originally from.
Alhadeff plans to visit Tallahassee to push lawmakers to pass the law. Her her goal is to make Alyssa's Law federal law.