A tool once mostly reserved for SWAT teams is now in the hands of school resource officers in eastern North Carolina.
Every SRO in Nash County will have access to a breaching shotgun, a weapon designed to break through locks and reach students quickly in an emergency.
“We’ve got to do what we can to ensure that we are combat-ready to take care of the community and ensure the safety of our kids, and this is just another tool in our toolbox,” said Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone.
Instead of firing traditional projectiles that could ricochet into a classroom, the guns use a special powder.
Nash County Sheriff’s Sergeant Kevin Bissette helped Stone implement these guns across the district.
“The powder moves forward, impacts the door, and as soon as it’s released from the barrel, it starts to disperse. So, it’s the gas wave and the powder dispersion that’s actually going through and bypassing the locks,” Bissette said.
WRAL News checked with every district in the area. Most of them responded, saying their SROs don’t use these guns.
Stone believes it’s a tool worth considering because it could save valuable time and lives in the event of a school emergency.
“Some of the places that have had these bad incidents, the doors have been locked and chained and things of that nature, and EMS and law enforcement cannot get into the schools immediately. Time is of the essence,” he said.
The addition of breaching shotguns is part of a broader push in Nash County to give school resource officers more tools to protect students. All SROs in the district were recently trained on ballistic shields as well.