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Democrats renewed calls for tougher gun laws after three children and a teacher were killed in an Oregon school shooting, but gun-rights advocates say the circumstances of the attack bolster their case against new restrictions.
The teenage shooter reportedly opened fire with a shotgun purchased by his mother before an armed father-of-two-students, Kaylub Giamanco, pursued him into Silver Rail Elementary School and fatally shot him. Second Amendment advocates argue additional gun restrictions would not have stopped the killer and could make it harder for armed civilians like Giamanco to intervene.
“Democrats are shamefully weaponizing this tragedy in Oregon to advance their political agenda on gun control,” Aidan Johnston, director of federal affairs for Gun Owners of America, told Fox News Digital.
“But more gun control isn’t the solution. The school was a gun-free zone, and the killer didn’t use a so-called ‘assault weapon.’ What did stop the mass murderer and save lives was an armed bystander with good aim.”
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School buses are lined up outside Silver Rail Elementary School where there was a shooting Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026 in Bend, Ore. (Joe Kline/AP Photo)
Gun-rights researcher John Lott, president of the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC), separately argued that restrictions on carrying guns can leave potential victims defenseless.
“These gun-free zones actually serve as a magnet for these attacks rather than stopping them from occurring,” Lott told Fox News Digital.
Lott pointed to CPRC research examining active shootings from 2014 through 2024, which he said found that legally armed civilians stopped more attacks than police did.
The National Rifle Association similarly questioned whether new restrictions would have changed the outcome.
“Oregon already has nearly every gun-control measure on the anti-gun wish list — including an A- rating from groups that push them — yet that did not prevent this attack,” the NRA said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“The armed bystander who pursued the shooter inside and ended the threat is the clearest reminder that, when seconds count, a prepared law-abiding citizen can stop a killer.”
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., was among the lawmakers calling for action after the shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, where Bend-LaPine school policy bans firearms, including concealed guns.
“The best way to honor these victims is to at long last pass commonsense gun laws that reduce the risks of more children, parents, teachers and staff forced to live in fear of similar nightmares for their schools,” Wyden said in a statement.
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Police tape is placed outside Silver Rail Elementary School after a shooting Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026 in Bend, Ore. (Joe Kline/AP Photo)
Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Ore., whose district includes Bend, also called for action while acknowledging the armed bystander’s intervention.
“When are we going to practice that same bravery that that bystander had?” Bynum asked during a vigil, after urging action to keep guns away from people who should not have them.
Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed, D-R.I., also cited the shooting in calling for additional gun laws and urging the Supreme Court to change course.
“It is far past time for the Roberts Court to make it clear their decision on guns does not endorse unfettered and unregulated access to weapons,” Reed said.
“In the absence of the Supreme Court ceasing its pro-gun rulings, Republicans need to join Democrats in enacting commonsense policies that could prevent these kinds of tragedies.”
The Roberts court has issued consequential gun-rights rulings, including District of Columbia v. Heller, which struck down the District of Columbia’s handgun ban in 2008, and New York State Rifle & Pistol Assn. v. Bruen, which struck down New York’s requirement that applicants show a special need to obtain a license to carry a handgun in public.
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People leave a family meeting area after a shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School Oct. 15, 2026, in Bend, Ore. (AP Photo/Joe Kline)
The political fighting is unfolding as investigators examine how the teenage gunman gained access to his mother’s shotgun, a key question in determining whether existing or proposed gun laws could have made a difference.
Asked specifically about universal background checks and red-flag laws, the NRA argued that neither would likely have prevented the shooting, citing initial reports that the teenager obtained a family member’s firearm.
The organization noted that background checks generally apply to firearm transfers, not unauthorized access to a firearm already owned by someone else. It also argued that a red-flag order would likely have been ineffective, although the circumstances surrounding the teenager’s access to the shotgun remain unclear.
Lott also pointed to a 2021 change in Oregon law that allowed individual school districts to prohibit concealed carry permit holders from bringing guns onto school property, arguing that such restrictions can leave schools more vulnerable.
Before that change, Lott said, Oregon teachers with concealed carry permits generally could carry guns at schools, although some districts imposed employment-related restrictions. He estimated that roughly 25 of the state’s 197 school districts have adopted prohibitions since then.
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“All the school shootings where anybody has been wounded or killed have occurred in places where people, teachers and staff are banned from having guns,” Lott said, citing CPRC research.
Lott said his organization is updating the research through 2025. He also argued that uniformed school resource officers face tactical disadvantages because attackers can identify them, avoid them or target them first.
“Having somebody in uniform is like having a neon sign above them that says, shoot me first,” Lott said.
Lott also questioned whether penalties for violating gun-free zone restrictions would deter someone already facing multiple life sentences for murder.
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“They may be facing six or seven life sentences [on murder counts and the like]. Does taking five years away from their seventh or eighth life [sentence] going to matter? Is that a penalty for them? And the answer is no,” he said.
The NRA also cited research finding that 94% of mass shootings since 1950 occurred in gun-free zones, echoing Lott’s argument.
“Law-abiding Americans have the right to defend themselves and their communities rather than rely solely on a sign or sticker. The tragedy in Bend is a clear example of how an armed citizen who is prepared and willing to act can stop an attacker and save lives. Policies that keep responsible people disarmed near schools leave those locations more vulnerable, not safer,” an NRA spokesperson said.
Lott maintained that gun-free zone restrictions can therefore disadvantage lawful gun owners without meaningfully deterring someone planning a mass shooting.
Fox News Digital’s James Cirrone and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
