And don't think it couldn't happen in your school district. During the same period, juvenile arrests for weapons offenses increased by 117 percent, compared to a 21 percent increase in adult arrests on weapons charges. What's more, juvenile weapons offenses are not restricted to urban centers. If a student were seriously injured, you'd summon professional medical assistance. The potential for danger is real even for administrators who know the student involved, and the situation should be considered every bit as grave as a fire or a medical emergency.
Police officers receive extensive training in dealing with armed subjects.
The very presence of a police officer can have a strong deterrent effect on armed suspects. It is fairly common, for example, for drug dealers to run from police just so they can turn a corner and throw away their handguns. I've seen this happen countless times in my experience as a police officer. I once chased a high school student who had assaulted an assistant principal and was said to have a handgun in one of his boots. Turning a corner, out of sight for a few seconds, he discarded a large butcher knife from his boot and continued to flee.