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Donald Trump has been bristling at resistance to his controversial proposal of arming teachers in the classroom. A recent incident from the past weekend will further undermine his suggested mandate.
Sean Simpson, a chemistry teacher for the Parkland High School where the mass shooting took place in February, inadvertently left his loaded Glock 9mm in a public restroom over the weekend.
Simpson told authorities he left the gun in one of the bathroom stalls at Deerfield Beach Pier, but before he was able to reclaim it, a drunk and homeless individual, Joseph Spataro, 69, found the unattended pistol and fired it.
Nobody was hurt. But both Simpson and Spataro – who told police he fired the gun to see if it was loaded – were arrested.
Broward County deputies wrote a statement regarding their arrests.
There was a reasonable likelihood that the firearm could have ended up in the hands of a child or the discharge of the firearm could have wounded another person or child.
The 43-year-old chemistry teacher has encouraged and praised the Stoneman Douglas students who lead the charge to fight for tighter gun restrictions and participated in the March For Our Lives demonstration in Washington, D.C. on March 24.
Simpson recalled the tragic event at Stoneman Douglas that day.
I was running from the sound of gunfire .. in a high school I felt safe in. That's not OK, that never should be a thing that could happen. .. These kids are demanding action, they're going to cause change. These students are going to stand up, they're going to speak from their hearts, and they're not going to be silenced
According to a report on NPR, Simpson told NBC News that the idea of teachers carrying a gun on campus is a complicated debate.
I know there are some of us that are willing to take the training if it was offered and probably be another line of defense. But again, that is a complicated subject and I'm not sure if it's the answer. I think it's easier to get these types of weapons out of the hands of people that aren't meant to do anything but kill. They're not meant for hunting.
Simpson was charged for failing to safely secure the pistol and for second-degreee misdemeamor – which are counts that could lead to a 60-day jail sentence. 10 News reported Simpson posted $250 bail.
The bullet struck a wall when Spataro drunkenly fired the shot in the bathroom. He was charged for trespassing and firing a weapon while intoxicated.
In short, the incident affirms one thing about Sean Simpson.