Re: "Gun-Free Zones – Teachers shouldn't double as police officers," Thursday Editorials.

You should try the "common sense test" regarding teachers keeping guns in schools. You propose a metal detector or security guard as the solution for a small rural school. A metal detector, even if affordable, doesn't deter a deranged assailant. The killer merely shoots the detector operator on the way into the school. A single security guard may as well wear a sign saying, "Shoot me first – I am the only armed person here."

Any teacher or student who is angry or crazy enough to go on a shooting spree will simply bring a gun; they won't plan on using a gun that is locked in a teacher's desk. A teacher who is trained to shoot straight (which isn't hard to do) with a locked gun may not be the perfect solution, but in many situations is the only affordable solution.

Edward Gray, Dallas