Crime & Safety

San Mateo Officers Review Safety Protocol at Schools Following Connecticut Massacre

San Mateo Police Chief Susan Manheimer says the department has been in touch with local schools all morning following the tragic mass shooting in Connecticut.

San Mateo police officers were sent to local schools Friday morning to review safety protocol following a tragic shooting at a Connecticut elementary school.

The mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School Friday morning horrified the nation and left parents questioning how they can protect their children.

Twenty-seven people were killed—the majority of them children between the ages of 5 and 10—at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. The violence is the second deadliest school shooting in U.S. history.

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"We have been working closely with our local school district administrators since early this morning to keep them updated on the evolving situation and assess any local threats and need for additional actions," San Mateo Police Chief Susan Manheimer told San Mateo Patch on Friday afternoon.

"Given the fact that it appears this is an isolated and targeted incident, we sent officers to each of our local school sites this morning simply to reassure them, review protocols, and see if there were any additional needs that they had," Manheimer said.

Find out what's happening in San Mateowith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"We were one of the first counties in California to institute active shooter training with our schools and local law enforcement and have very sound protocols and practices in place; hopefully we will never have to initiate them," she said.

"Additionally, we continue to assess and review safety and security measures with  our school sites and administration to ensure we protect and prepare our local school community.

"Obviously, this tragic event touches and concerns us all, and we send our deepest sympathies and thoughts out to all those touched by this tragedy," Manheimer said.


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