School Safety Zone

Like most of America's 50 states, Georgia places a very heavy emphasis on keeping children safe while at school. Though the marketing and public emphasis may be on secondary and elementary schools, Georgia's School Safety Project actually applies to every educational facility in the state of Georgia, be it a night class facility, university, college, or trade school.

Essentially, Georgia's School Safety Project mandates that no guns or weapons of any kind be allowed within 1,000 feet of any school at any time. Failure to adhere to this law is a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years in prison. This makes Georgia's stance on bringing guns onto educational campuses one of the toughest in the country.

This law applies to teachers, students, visitors, and other members of the school's community, though there are certain teachers and law enforcement individuals with the ability and rights to carry a firearm. Additionally, individuals who keep a firearm or weapon in a locked compartment in a motor vehicle are exempt from any serious persecution, so long as the individual operating the motor vehicle is over the age of 21.

Former Governor Roy Barnes has put this initiative at the forefront of his policies, writing that students, parents and faculty must work together to "ensure that children and educations are surrounded by a feeling of safety and security" as they go about their educational development.

Contact

You can contact Georgia's "In the Zone" School Safety Project by going to the following link - http://web.archive.org/web/20030228220724/www.ganet.org/inthezone/zone.html - or calling the state reporting hotline at 1-877-SAY-STOP (1-800-729-7867).