Parents and faculty tied to Taft Union High School, near Bakersfield, are counting their blessings no one was killed Thursday morning.
Investigators say a 16-year old boy took his brother's shotgun to the campus with the intention of shooting two classmates who reportedly bullied him.
The suspect was able to shoot and injure one child before a teacher and campus supervisor intervened and got him to drop the gun. Police moved in and arrested the teenager.
“They knew not to let him leave that classroom and they took that responsibility very seriously and we're very proud of the job they did,” said Kern Co. Sheriff Donny Youngblood.
This recent school shooting comes not even a full month after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut. Since that tragedy, gun control has been heavily debated.
Jacob Belemjian is against the idea.
“The only way to defend yourself is to have equal force,” said Jacob Belemjian of The Firing Line.
Belemjian manages The Firing Line in Clovis. He says guns are not a problem as long as they are in the hands of law abiding citizens.
“Crazy people do crazy things. There's no predicting it, there's no preventing it,” said Belemjian.
Belemjian argued how guns save lives. He referred to the case a couple nights ago in Madera where the owner of a pharmacy shot and killed one of the two robbery suspects who broke into his business.
“He did the right thing. He refused to be a victim. He said not today and the side effect to that is we have a dead assailant,” said Belemjian.
But not everyone sees things from the same viewpoint.
“I'm totally against guns. Less guns, less violence,” said Bob Bhaurla, a liquor store owner.
Liquor store owner Bob Bhaurla does not believe in having his employees armed to take on potential criminals. He says it's too risky.
“If you have a gun and are trying to reach it, that could trigger him to fear for his life, so he could shoot. It’s only money, let it go. Let the person live, so we can live as well,” said Bhaurla.
In related national news, Vice President Joe Biden is preparing to deliver his plan for more gun control. California already has many of the restrictions in place that Biden would like to implement.
