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Moviegoers in North Texas are noticing extra security around local theaters following Wednesday night’s attack at a movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Pulling into the Alamo Drafthouse in Richardson on Friday, Gari Gonzalez noticed police in the parking lot.
“It wouldn't be a bad idea,” said Gonzalez. “That extra security, that presence that would deter somebody from doing anything crazy. But we're going to live. We can't be in a bubble.”
In the Lafayette shooting, a gunman bought a ticket, sat down, and then 20 minutes into the screening, stood and opened fire.
“You automatically think of Colorado and other things,” said Richardson moviegoer Ben Coogan. “You should be aware but I don't think it should change your plans.”
“I'm not really concerned it would happen here,” said moviegoer Jessica Coogan. “I think everyone's on guard and we are here to have a good time and I think it was an isolated incident.”
But after multiple shootings, former Cockrell Hill Police Chief Catherine Smit-Torrez says she wouldn’t agree with gun reform to reduce the number of guns, instead saying it’s time to take on mental health care gaps in the system and increase interventions.
“Make sure that every county has the certified mental health officer that's licensed and every agency can contact that person if they get a call like that,” said Smit-Torrez. “And have that person make the intervening steps with the family and that person.”
In the meantime, Smit-Torrez says theaters can take common sense precautions, like increasing a police presence so families feel safe.
Some have talked about metal detectors or bag checks following the Lafayette attack.
It remains to be seen whether security at movie theaters will change drastically.