Sen. Yee Calls Connecticut School Shooting 'Shocking, Horrific'

Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco and San Mateo, has issued a statement following the tragic mass shooting at an elementary school in Connecticut Friday morning.

"As a father, child psychologist, and legislator, my thoughts and prayers go out to the children and families of Newtown," Yee said.

"In a year with so many appalling acts of gun violence, this is the most shocking of such tragedies. While we do not have all the details behind this senseless and unconscionable massacre, it is a sad and horrific reminder of what is possible when guns get into the wrong hands. We must limit access to weapons that can result in such catastrophe and mass murder."

After the mass killing of six people in August at a Sikh Temple in Wisconsin, Yee told Patch that he wanted stricter regulations on the purchase of weapons. 

The mass shooting at a Connecticut 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.

Schools are perceived as a safe place for kids, though few have security measures in place to defend against violence like what happened at Sandy Hook School.

The school's doors are locked at 9:30 a.m., and visitors are required to sign in, according to the Sandy Hook School website. When violence erupted Friday morning, the school went on "lockdown," according to media reports. That means teachers and staff locked students inside classrooms rather than risk evacuation.

Stories of heroic teachers and school staffers at the school have emerged. One teacher locked all of her students in a closet to protect them, the Huffington Post reported.

Parents were notified by a reverse 911 call that went out to all Newtown public school families, NBC reported.