Police, School Dept. Work Together To Ensure Student Safety

Four months after Adam Lanza blasted his way into Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, administration officials and police have reviewed and tightened safety procedures at Johnston's six public schools.

"When these kinds of things happen, this is when schools and law enforcement come together," said Police Chief Richard Tamburini last week. "The schools are a priority."

For many officers on the Johnston force, protecting the schools is personal.

"A lot of my officers have children in these schools," he said.

There are two school resource police officers in Johnston – one at Ferri Middle School and Johnston Senior High, assignments that have been in place for the past 15 years, Tamburini said.

Those SROs have been a very valuable presence over the years, said Supt. Bernard DiLullo, Jr.

"They are absolutely helpful. They form nice relationships with the students and they are immediately responsive, even beyond the school day," he said.

According to DiLullo, the schools were pretty prepared even before the events in Newtown.

"We actually had already taken a lot of steps," he said. "All schools have external video cameras, some have internal cameras ... and every classroom door is kept locked."

Those cameras are monitored at the police station. In addition, there are so-called panic buttons that connect directly to the police in the main office at each school.

"We have been exploring mobile panic buttons," DiLullo said. Those would carried by school staff, so if there was an incident in the playground, for instance, they could contact the police with a press of the button.

Lockdown and evacuation drills have taken on a new urgency. Police have worked with the schools to review procedures. In addition, the Johnston Police swat team has completed exercises at the schools, Tamburini said. 

In addition, he said, police have been instructed to park near schools when completing paper or computer work (each police car is equipped with a computer). Tamburini said he's even encouraged officers to take their coffee breaks nearby schools. 

"We kind of hang out around the schools," he said. "We understand our role and our responsibility. We've done everything we can possibly do."

He continued, "We're very concerned with the children. They are our most valued possession in Johnston. It's a labor of love."