RALEIGH — Vice President Kamala Harris is set to return to Charlotte on Thursday, Jan. 11, to address the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts in combating gun violence.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona will accompany her on the trip.
During the visit, she will speak with educators, counselors, parents, gun safety advocates, and local leaders to announce new funding from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, according to administration officials. The funding aims to enhance access to mental health resources in schools across North Carolina and the nation.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) has seen at least 30 guns found on its campuses in the past few years per reporting by WBT Radio host Brett Jensen.
Jensen reported in early June 2022 that 30 guns had been found at CMS schools throughout the 2021-22 school year. That number is a record for the school system in the past 10 year. The previous high recorded was 22 during the 2018-19 school year.
“The fact that no guns have killed anyone on a CMS campus is nothing short of a miracle,” Jensen said on the June 7, 2022, episode of “Breaking with Brett Jensen.”
In a Jan. 13, 2023, report, Jensen noted the impact of CMS implementing body scanners and the vast reduction in guns on school grounds. As of that report, 2 guns had been found during the school year so far, down from 23 during the same period the year prior.
None of the officials Jensen spoke to attributed the drop in number of guns found in schools to mental health resources. Instead, weapons deterrent systems were credited with having had the biggest impact.
WBTV News reported in early November 2021 that a public records request showed nearly 100 weapons have been found on CMS campuses that school year. Weapons listed in the request response included guns, knives, box cutters, and tasers.
