After a school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas killed 10 people and wounded 10 others, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called for immediate action rather than thoughts and prayers.
The school shooting, which took place on Friday morning, is being called “the worst disaster ever to strike this community.” And now the Republican governor is ready to “work immediately on swift solutions to prevent tragedies like this from ever happening again.”
“We need to do more than just pray for the victims and their families,” Gov. Abbott said during a news conference after the shooting. “It’s time in Texas that we take action to step up and make sure this tragedy is never repeated ever again in the history of the state of Texas.”
The alleged shooter, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, 17 and student at Santa Fe High School, is in custody accused of capital murder after he used a shotgun and a .38 revolver that were legally register in Pagourtzis’ farther’s name to kill nine students and one teacher, Gov. Abbott told reporters.
Gov. Abbott plans to “convene ’roundtable discussions’ next week that will bring together lawmakers and community members with a wide array of perspectives” in an attempt to turn discussions into legislation.
He is asking for input from parents, students, teachers, gun rights supporters and lawmakers from the Texas Senate and House of Representatives.
“We want to hear from everybody who has an interest in what has happened today, so we can work together on putting together laws that will protect Second Amendment rights but at the same time ensure that our communities and especially our schools are safer places,” Gov. Abbott said.
When asked about his proposed legislation, Gov. Abbott said his focus is to “keep guns out of the hands of those who pose an immediate danger to others.”
“They include resources to address the mental health issues that are seemingly behind so many of these shootings,” Gov. Abbott said.
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