State security team to review safety at Richfield school after shooting
Emergency crews stage outside the South Education Center in Richfield, Minn. (FOX 9)
RICHFIELD, Minn. (FOX 9) - A state security team will be on the campus of the South Education Center in Richfield, Minnesota on Friday taking a closer look at the building’s safety systems and protocols after last week’s deadly shooting.
The security assessment will be led by the Minnesota Safety Center, an entity within the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Office.
Intermediate District 287 asked for recommendations to improve security at the building where the shooting unfolded that left one student dead and another critically injured. Two students have been charged with murder for the shooting.
At the beginning of the school year, District 287 had done away with metal detectors at the South Education Center. But following the deadly shooting on the sidewalk outside the building, staff began checking students with handheld wand metal detectors -- one of several immediate changes on the Richfield campus.
Richfield school shooting: 2 students shot, 1 killed outside school
Police responded for the shooting on the sidewalk outside the South Education Center on Penn Avenue shortly after noon. At the scene, police say they found two students had been shot. Both students were rushed to the hospital, where officers say one of the students has since died.
A district statement says everything related to safety and security is under review right now. They have said the mission is building a trauma-sensitive, healing-centered environment and will welcome all recommendations from the state experts.
In addition to Friday’s assessment, the security team is scheduled to interview all staff in the building next week.