Sen. Mike Walsworth, R-West Monroe, proposed the bill that would allow Louisiana students to wear bulletproof backpacks. (Photo: Ashley Wolf)
Brianna Jones-Williams and Martha Ramirez
Considering bulletproof backpacks for your children?
The state Legislature is close to approving them as optional school gear, and they are easy to find online from companies with names like Bullet Blocker and Guard Dog Security. The backpacks typically cost from $100 to $400 and come in a variety of colorful styles and prints.
But can they really stop a speeding bullet?
The suppliers say tests show that their backpacks, which contain panels of the densely woven Kevlar fiber used in bulletproof vests, can withstand shots from handguns and shotguns. But ballistics experts say the backpacks are no match for bullets from assault rifles, like AR-15’s, that have been used in recent school shootings and that strike the most terror in parents’ hearts.
Read the story in The Shreveport Times.
LSU Manship School Statehouse Bureau 