Should more people bear arms after Schlenker shooting?

A potential mass shooting that Rockledge authorities say was headed off by "good guys with guns" last week has some Second Amendment rights proponents calling for more people becoming responsible gun owners.

But there are also calls for caution, as the nation continues to reel from the disturbing trend of gun violence in public places.

"We (law enforcement) call ourselves the first responders, but in reality, we're the second responders," said former Melbourne police Detective Mark Laderwarg, who is also a firearms instructor and an advocate for gun rights.

He said he believes more citizens should garner concealed weapons permits to prepare against the unthinkable, whether it be a shooting in a church, mall or other public places.

More: Auto shop employees credited with taking down accused Rockledge gunman

The latest incident to stir the long-simmering issue was the Nov. 24 shooting at Schlenker Automotive in Rockledge. One person, Roger Smith, 50, was fatally shot and fellow employee David Andres Cordero, 25, paralyzed after police said Robert Lorenzo Bailey Jr. walked toward the shop and fired multiple rounds from his .40- caliber handgun.

Rockledge police credited two employees, Don Smith and Nathan Taylor, who were armed with their own guns with halting the shooting spree by Bailey, who was shot twice.

"It's obvious (Bailey) could have continued to shoot until someone stopped him," Laderwarg said.

Bailey has been charged with the shooting death of Smith and the attempted murder of Cordero.

More: The Black Friday Schlenker shooting: What we know

Laderwarg's view has public support in high places.

Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey made national headlines when he encouraged residents to either carry a gun or find a weapon, like a stun gun, to use if they aren't comfortable with guns.

"I'm firmly convinced we can no longer sit back and pray the fight isn't brought to us," Ivey said in a YouTube video he posted in June on the "Brevard Sheriff" account. "If there's an active shooter until law enforcement arrives, it's up to you to neutralize or eliminate the threat."

Possible Dangers?

Elsewhere, some activists and researchers see a danger in having an armed citizenry responding to potential threats. Everytown USA, which formed in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting in December 2012, aims to decrease gun violence. The group's platform includes strengthening gun laws and opposing measures that would increase concealed carrying and the use of silencers.

"So-called 'Stand Your Ground' laws, which encourage the use of deadly force outside the home, are associated with significantly higher justifiable homicide rates," the group states on its website. "This push toward allowing easy access to guns in a growing variety of public places has only resulted in a greater risk of gun violence."

In his video, Ivey encouraged people to carry because there's no telling when an emergency could happen.

"(The gun) does no good in your car or in your house," he said.

Statistically, it's rare for the average person who is armed to stop an incident with an active shooter, said Daniel Webster, professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.

"It is reckless to make recommendations for what people should or shouldn’t do by analyzing one or even several incidents of rampage shootings," Webster said. "Although these events have increased in recent years, they are still quite rare. If more and more people are armed with loaded handguns, it has implications for the events that occur far more commonly or even routinely."

More: Rockledge police bring active shooter training class to local church

Those events, he said, include people getting into arguments, drinking too much or finding themselves in stressful situations.

"Having more and more firearms in the mix of these daily occurrences translates into more violent crime and more deaths," Webster said.

There's been 29 mass shootings nationwide so far in 2017, rivaling the year-end numbers from 2015 and 2016, when there were 31 for each of those years. A mass killing is characterized as four or more deaths.

Good Guy with a gun

Besides the Rockledge homicide, there's been other cases across the country in recent months where citizens intervened to stop gunmen intent on inflicting carnage. Some were armed, others improvised.

Cheektowaga N.Y., Nov. 14: A gunman wearing armor and camoflauge firing at a Dollar General was struck by a motorist who said he wanted to stop the shooting. The gunman fired 20 rounds, but he struck and wounded just one person.

Sutherland Springs, Texas, Nov. 3: After a gunman opened fire at a church, killing 26 people, he fled the scene. He was shot twice by a gun safety instructor as he fled. Police found the gunman dead in his vehicle; he also suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Antioch, Tennessee, Sept. 24: A gunman shot and killed a woman in a church parking lot, then entered the house of worship and fired several more times. A worshipper got into a scuffle with the gunman, who accidentally shot himself. The church member retrieved his own gun from his car and subdued the suspect until authorities arrived.

Worries

While not every person is prepared to take up arms, the prevalence of mass shootings in the news is prompting many to find other ways to prepare.

That's why the Rockledge Police Department has been holding active shooter training sessions at businesses and churches. A major part of the training urges residents to fight the shooter.

One session by Rockledge police was held Wednesday at Faith Temple Christian Center.

Amy Robinson, owner of Learning Street Child Care Center in Cocoa, attended the Rockledge session. She says she doesn’t — and would never— allow employees with concealed carry licenses to have their guns with them at work.

“I would be OK with security at the daycare, but as far as staff working directly with children, not an option,” Robinson said. “Because they’re in such close contact with the children, there are too many accidents that could happen.”

But Robinson says if she had the money to hire security, she would.

Still, it's rare for gunfire to be visited upon a business in Brevard County. In August, a Chinese restaurant employee was shot and wounded by a robber in Titusville. Otherwise, law enforcement officials couldn't recall another recent situation where someone entered a business and began firing without a motive.

But some local businesses are re-evaluating protection measures.

“If businesses are going to carry, they’ve got to be proficient,” said Pam Williams, a Rockledge resident who also attended the Rockledge class. “They’ve got to know what they’re doing. I’m OK with businesses carrying, but they have to know what they’re doing.

"If it wasn’t for the two guys at Schlenker, it could have been worse. A lot worse.”

Ivey also praised the Schlenker employees.

"It takes some intestinal drive to confront" an active shooter, he said. "That was a business team that was prepared to respond."

MINISTRY OF DEFENSE

The Brevard County Sheriff's Office is holding an active shooter training session for churches at 8 a.m. Dec. 16 at New Life Christian Center, 6755 S. Washington Ave., Titusville.

Churches interested in the event can register online.

For more information, call the Sheriff's Office at 321-264-5201

Staff writer Tess Sheets contributed to this report.

Lamaur Stancil is a breaking news reporter for Florida Today and TCPalm.com. He can be reached at 321-242-3662 or 321-987-7179. E-mail him at lamaur.stancil@tcpalm.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TCPalmLStancil.

