Allen mass shooting: Collin County leaders point to public safety, reassure residents

The deadly shooting at Allen Premium Outlets on Saturday has local and state leaders weighing in on public safety.

Neighboring city leaders and state officials representing Collin County are working to ensure they protect their communities and constituents in the aftermath of the tragedy. Some officials have pointed to tighter gun control laws, while others have touted their city’s safety protocols and well-trained first responders.

“On behalf of the city council, our law enforcement personnel, first responders and all of our city employees – we will remain strong and stand united,” Allen Mayor Kenneth Fulk said, in part, in a statement released Sunday, a day after the tragedy.

Fulk declined to comment further when The Dallas Morning News asked about safety protocols in the community moving forward. He said the focus now is the victims, the impacted families and first responders. No Allen City Council members, all elected officials, returned correspondence from The News.

Leaders in other municipalities verbalized support for legislation, House Bill 2744, that would increase the age to purchase certain semi-automatic rifles in Texas from 18 to 21.

“You have to be 21 to buy a vape cigarette. Why would you not need to be 21 to buy an assault rifle?” McKinney Mayor George Fuller told The News. “I believe that most of America and most Republicans agree with that. However, I believe there are legislators that don’t have the courage to do what they know is what most Americans want because they’re too concerned about their next primary election.”

All six Democrats on the Texas House Community Safety Select Committee and two Republicans Rep. Sam Harless of Spring and Justin Holland, of Rockwall, voted to send the bill to the full Texas House of Representatives on Monday.

In a tweet on the same day, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker expressed her support for the bill.

“We have a crisis. Yes, mentl health is part of the solution, but we can’t afford to just stand still waiting for longer-term investments to save lives. We need immediate action,” her tweet said. “I know this bill would not have prevented the Allen mall mass shooting, but it is a start in preventing future tragedies,” Parker said in the Tweet. “HB 2744 could save lives. It deserves debate from our leaders in the Texas legislature.”

Neighboring officials reassure residents

In Plano, a city that borders the southwest corner of Allen, police have directed their efforts in higher visibility at many locations with large numbers of people, said Shelby Kervin, lieutenant over the homeland security department for Plano.

Kervin added that the city engages in community outreach to train people on dealing with natural disasters, active shooter events and other critical situations. He said Plano’s law enforcement agencies participate in a bi-annual active attack scenario exercise.

“We try to hit a level of experience and practice by utilizing those training opportunities, and we also work together in shoring up emergency response plans,” Kervin told The News. “So if something does go bad, there’s already a written plan to execute after whatever occurred.”

Frisco Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Angelia Pelham said she would encourage community members to rely on the fact that Frisco has “incredible public safety.” She noted that the city has strong first responders and that the city has been nominated twice for the safest city in the country.

“This is a question that every community has to face — how do you reassure the public that they’re safe, and we live in a world where people can have access to weapons, and the reality is we face it every day,” she said.

Newly reelected Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney said voters approved a little more than $131 million in bonds for public safety facilities and equipment earlier this month.

“We ache for the City of Allen, its residents and business owners,” Cheney said. “Sadly, we also recognize such horrific events can happen anywhere, but we do what we can to emphasize safety is everyone’s responsibility.”

For more than two decades, Frisco has allocated about half of its general fund budget to public safety each year, he said. Cheney added that both the city’s police and fire departments are internationally accredited, and the city prioritizes programs like Neighborhood Watch and Frisco CAN to increase safety.

“We also know we can always improve,” Cheney said. “We’ll continue to work tirelessly, as a community, to make public safety a top priority.”

Will people of Texas know peace?

Mayor Fuller of McKinney also pointed to making sure that first responder units are well staffed and equipped with the best training, equipment and resources possible.

“What else can we do proactively? I don’t know. Before we start talking about a systemic issue, and are there things that our legislature should be doing to try to ensure that we don’t keep having these situations… But that gets into a whole other topic,” he said.

Rep. Mihaela E. Plesa, whose District 70 covers portions of Dallas, Plano, Richardson and Allen, said in a statement released Sunday that this tragedy, like others that have happened in the state, could have been prevented.

Plesa added that if elected officials can take credit for the successes in the state, they must be willing to accept responsibility for the failures and tragedies and do better for constituents.

“This is the 199th mass shooting this year in our nation,” Plesa said in the statement. “Until we take real action, the people of Texas will never know peace — never truly feel safe leaving their homes, sending their kids off to school, going to the mall, or enjoying life in public places.”