Since the Parkland shooting, many teachers have decided that passive resistance and relying on someone else to provide school security is no longer an option. Hundreds of them nationwide have received training as districts decide to allow teachers to defend themselves and their students from potential shooters using firearms.
So you’ll probably understand why advocates of teachers having the option to carry guns won’t be thanking Sean Simpson any time soon.
Not the most normal sight: a gun left in the bathroom stall.
But that’s exactly what went down on Sunday in a men’s room at the Deerfield Beach Pier.
The circumstances of how the Glock 9mm got there are unusual.
According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, the weapon was left by Sean Simpson. If his name sounds familiar, he’s the teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas who said he’d be willing to arm himself while on duty.
Mr. Simpson probably would have benefitted from this video.
Unfortunately . . .
According to the sheriff’s office report, Simpson told deputies he’d left his gun by accident. By the time the chemistry teacher realized his mistake, the Glock was already in the hands of a drunk homeless man who had picked it up and fired. The bullet hit a wall.
Thankfully, no one was hurt.
Simpson was able to grab the gun away from the vagrant, Joseph Spataro, who was charged with firing a weapon while intoxicated and trespassing.
As for the MSD teacher, he was arrested and charged with failing to safely store a firearm, a second-degree misdemeanor. Simpson posted a $250 cash bond and was released.
According to the report, he won’t face any repercussions at work because of the charge. The fact that this little incident happened just two days before the Broward School Board unanimously rejected a proposal to arm teachers in its schools is probably just an unhappy coincidence. But for his conspicuous lack of attention to the whereabouts of his loaded firearm, Sean Simpson is our irresponsible gun owner of the day.