Ohio governor signs law allowing teachers, school staff to carry guns with 24 hours of training

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill into law Monday allowing school districts across the state to authorize teachers, principals and other staff to carry guns into classrooms with just 24 hours of training.

The new law – initially introduced by state Republican Rep. Thomas Hall as House Bill 99 – will lower the required training hours for the armed personnel from about 700 hours to just four hours of training in scenario-based or simulated training exercises and a maximum of 20 hours for first aid training, history of school shootings and reunification education, The Columbus Dispatch reported. 

"In life we make choices, and we don't always know what the outcome is going to be," DeWine said at a press conference Monday. "What this Legislature has done, I've done by signing it, is giving schools an option based on their particular circumstances to make the best decision they can make with the best information they have. That's all any decision-maker can do."