Panel reverses itself on schools arming staff

A state board is allowing 13 Arkansas school districts to continue using a licensing law to employ teachers, administrators and other staff as armed security guards, despite a warning from the state's top attorney that the licenses are intended for private security companies.

The Arkansas Board of Private Investigators and Security Agencies on Wednesday ruled that the schools can continue using the licenses for the next two years, but won't accept any more applications. The panel had suspended the licenses last month after Attorney General Dustin McDaniel issued an opinion that the licensing law was intended for private firms and not public schools.

The panel had initially revoked two of the licenses Wednesday, but reversed itself after voting to keep another district's license intact.

Read more in Thursday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

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