State Attorney General Pam Bondi says armed guards OK in Manatee County schools

A highly debated issue over the last year, elementary school security is still up in the air for the Manatee County School District.

But, state Attorney General Pam Bondi views the situation differently, according to a letter released Friday by School Board attorney Mitchell Teitelbaum.

Bondi provided authority for the district to work with local law enforcement to provide school resource officers and school safety officers.

Both are allowed to carry guns, according to Florida Statute 790.115, which provides exemptions to the no-guns-on-school-campuses policy.

Hiring the armed guards falls under the "approved school sanctioned activities" in the statute.

Teitelbaum agrees that the school district may exercise its authority to use armed security guards on elementary school grounds. 

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].