Armored backpacks and a rush on guns after Conn.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The reaction to the Connecticut school shooting can be seen in gun stores and self-defense retailers across the nation: Anxious parents are fueling sales of armored backpacks for children while firearms enthusiasts are stocking up on assault rifles in anticipation of tighter gun control measures.
A spike in gun sales is common after a mass shooting, but the Connecticut tragedy has generated record sales in many states. Colorado set a single-day record for gun background check requests the day after the Connecticut mass shootings, and some online retailers are removing assault rifles from websites in part because of diminishing supplies.
Nevada saw more requests for background checks in the days after the shooting than any other weekend this year. Some gun shop owners are even holding back on sales, anticipating only more interest and value after President Barack Obama on Wednesday tasked his administration with creating concrete proposals to reduce gun violence.
Robert Akers, a Rapid City, S.D., gun seller specializing in assault-style rifles, said he has about 50 of the weapons in stock but he's not actively trying to sell them and has even turned off his phone.
"It's a madhouse," said Akers, owner of Rapid Fire Firearms. "Any time they have one of these shootings or an election, it gets that way. I don't even want to sell them right now because I won't be able to replace them for probably six months. ... The price is only going to go up higher."
At least three companies that make armored backpacks designed to shield children caught in a shootings also are reporting a large spike in sales and interest.
The body armor inserts fit into the back panel of a child's backpack, and they sell for about $150 to $300, depending on the company.
The armor is designed to stop bullets from handguns, not assault rifles like the one used by the Connecticut shooter. The manufacturers and some parents say that while they don't guarantee children won't be killed, they could still be used as shields.
"Just like a seatbelt increases your odds of surviving in a car crash, these increase your odds of surviving being shot," said Kerry Clark, president of Texas-based Backpackshield.com.
Ken Larson, 41, of Denver, Colo., already had an armored backpack for himself and convinced his wife to buy one for their 1-year-old after the Connecticut shooting on Friday, when a gunman stormed Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown and massacred 20 first-graders and six adults.
"It's a no brainer. My son's life is invaluable," Larson said. "If I can get him a backpack for $200 that makes him safer, I don't even have to think about that. Where is my credit card?"
Though Larson knows the backpack won't guarantee his son's safety when he starts school, he says it's a worthy precaution.
"Kids already carry backpacks. When there is a shooting, you run for your life," he said. "Having it right there and on when he runs for his life gives him more safety."
Elmar Uy, vice president of operations at Bullet Blocker, a Massachusetts-based company that has sold the backpack armor since 2007, says the company's sales have tripled since last week.
At Amendment II in Salt Lake City, sales of children's backpacks and armored inserts are up 300 percent.
"The incident last week highlights the need to protect our children," said co-owner Derek Williams. "We didn't get in this business to do this. But the fact that is that our armor can help children just as it can help soldiers."
Amendment II was founded about two years ago using a new lightweight nanotechnology to make body armor products for soldiers and law enforcement less cumbersome. They began making the backpack inserts about six months ago, and also sell child-sized bulletproof vests. While the backpack sales still represent a minor part of the business, they now sell two varieties online — one featuring Disney princesses and the other a scene from the movie Avengers.
Clark, president of Backpackshield.com, began making youth backpacks after the mass shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007.
"I don't do it for the money, but to save the lives of kids," Clark said. "We've got to do something more than just hide in the corner of the classroom."
A spike in gun sales is common after a mass shooting, but the Connecticut tragedy has generated record sales in many states. Colorado set a single-day record for gun background check requests the day after the Connecticut mass shootings, and some online retailers are removing assault rifles from websites in part because of diminishing supplies.
Nevada saw more requests for background checks in the days after the shooting than any other weekend this year. Some gun shop owners are even holding back on sales, anticipating only more interest and value after President Barack Obama on Wednesday tasked his administration with creating concrete proposals to reduce gun violence.
Robert Akers, a Rapid City, S.D., gun seller specializing in assault-style rifles, said he has about 50 of the weapons in stock but he's not actively trying to sell them and has even turned off his phone.
"It's a madhouse," said Akers, owner of Rapid Fire Firearms. "Any time they have one of these shootings or an election, it gets that way. I don't even want to sell them right now because I won't be able to replace them for probably six months. ... The price is only going to go up higher."
At least three companies that make armored backpacks designed to shield children caught in a shootings also are reporting a large spike in sales and interest.
The body armor inserts fit into the back panel of a child's backpack, and they sell for about $150 to $300, depending on the company.
The armor is designed to stop bullets from handguns, not assault rifles like the one used by the Connecticut shooter. The manufacturers and some parents say that while they don't guarantee children won't be killed, they could still be used as shields.
"Just like a seatbelt increases your odds of surviving in a car crash, these increase your odds of surviving being shot," said Kerry Clark, president of Texas-based Backpackshield.com.
Ken Larson, 41, of Denver, Colo., already had an armored backpack for himself and convinced his wife to buy one for their 1-year-old after the Connecticut shooting on Friday, when a gunman stormed Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown and massacred 20 first-graders and six adults.
"It's a no brainer. My son's life is invaluable," Larson said. "If I can get him a backpack for $200 that makes him safer, I don't even have to think about that. Where is my credit card?"
Though Larson knows the backpack won't guarantee his son's safety when he starts school, he says it's a worthy precaution.
"Kids already carry backpacks. When there is a shooting, you run for your life," he said. "Having it right there and on when he runs for his life gives him more safety."
Elmar Uy, vice president of operations at Bullet Blocker, a Massachusetts-based company that has sold the backpack armor since 2007, says the company's sales have tripled since last week.
At Amendment II in Salt Lake City, sales of children's backpacks and armored inserts are up 300 percent.
"The incident last week highlights the need to protect our children," said co-owner Derek Williams. "We didn't get in this business to do this. But the fact that is that our armor can help children just as it can help soldiers."
Amendment II was founded about two years ago using a new lightweight nanotechnology to make body armor products for soldiers and law enforcement less cumbersome. They began making the backpack inserts about six months ago, and also sell child-sized bulletproof vests. While the backpack sales still represent a minor part of the business, they now sell two varieties online — one featuring Disney princesses and the other a scene from the movie Avengers.
Clark, president of Backpackshield.com, began making youth backpacks after the mass shooting at Virginia Tech in 2007.
"I don't do it for the money, but to save the lives of kids," Clark said. "We've got to do something more than just hide in the corner of the classroom."
how about just adding tight security to ALL schools. Id pay extra taxes for that
Makes a lovely Christmas present. "Look son, Kevlar, what you've always wanted."
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Preying upon peoples fears. Always alot of money to be made there.
Let's have armoured gym shorts too, that should do a lot of good, keeping kids safe. Lining someone else's pocket with your hard earned money by buying a product that you don't need which will give you a false sense of security without solving any actual problem. 'Tis the American way. Merry Christmas everyone!
@PDXguy23 The shorts might be armored, but they'd be full after a few rounds were fired at you.
I have a daughter in 1st grade and another in 2nd grade. The first thing they do when they get to school is take off their backpacks. The shooter in Connecticut came in after kids had already arrived at school and were in class, so it seems a bullet proof backpack, in light of last week's massacre would most likely have not saved any lives. A backpack, at best, would have most likely only protected their back (if they were wearing it), or their front (if they had time and presence of mind, given the chaos, to use it as a shield). This idea sounds to me as more of a money making idea for the backpack company than anything else, preying on parents' fears, and attempting to elicit a false sense of security. I can say that if I sent my girls off to school with a bulletproof backpack, I wouldn't feel they were any safer than with the ones they currently use. Â
Sheeple...
 1. Junior high and High schools kids may have their back packs between classes... (mine sure dont but some may)
 2. Kids do pay attention to whats in their back packs.. and remove anything they dont deem necessary.. cause it gets to heavy.. and while the fear is in them it may stay in there, however after a month or so it will become a toy or just lost. (it may stay in while mom and dad is around.. but whenthey arent checkign anymore it will go away)
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With that said good business decision... the organization is going to make alot of money from peoples fears. Look at the numbers.. your children have better odds of dieing from second hand smoke than a mass school shooting.
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Laws that may be going into place...when was the last time you heard about a bad guy twarted by any law... because we all know they follow the law ... they also wear signs and have business cards identifying them as criminals.
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these are not cheap. and the kid pays no mind if they don't know what it is. If I were to get one for my kid, He wouldn't even know what it would be or what it would be used for other then sticking his books in..Hell that would make for a great way to protect his things like his School computer ..
 @lee986321 I would think you would want your kid to know what is, so if a gunman were to come in the classroom after the kids have taken off their backpack( which usually happens first thing as they come into the classroom),  they can run go get it and use it as a shield.Â
 @stoneloc I think Lee would instill the value of wearing that backpack ALL day. Can't have Junior forgetting it if bullets start flying. Heck, if it's laying around, the shooter might use it to protect himself from the armed teachers....right, Lee?
This is crazy... like a child wears their backpack all day at school. Â Not to mention, it only provides back protection. Â I, personally, think a bullet proof back pack would bring about too much anxiety in kids. Â I do not want my children to have to worry about more things than they already have to. Â
Armored backpacks for little kids...unreal...
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I am soooo glad that my parents didn't live to see this... Â Â
Let's just issue all children in school bullet-proof vests. We can have Spiderman ones for boys and Barbie ones for girls. Then everyone will feel safe and happy.Â