The recent events in Newtown, Connecticut have shaken the nation, and events like that can be very difficult to prepare for.

The DeWitt County Sheriff's department has recently been active in trying to have a plan in place in the event, something like what happened Friday should happen locally. Sheriff Jered Shofner coordinated a meeting with law enforcement officials from the Bloomington/Normal area to get their thoughts on how they handled the shooting at Normal Community High School in September. Around 30 people from various law enforcement agencies and school administrators from around the area were on hand for this meeting.

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Since he has taken office, Sheriff Shofner's biggest area of emphasis has been communication. He says it is no surprise the biggest subject at this meeting was communication. With the explosion of social media in today's society, the Sheriff believes keeping an open line of factual communication is very important in these situations.

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One thing the Sheriff liked that he heard from those involved in the Normal incident was the fact they had executed a mock drill of an event like this, not long before the actual event took place. He notes they had designated a reunification center prior to the event. He felt students using their cell phones to inform their parents of their situation made things calmer.

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Sheriff Shofner says he came away from the two hour meeting with about five pages of notes and ideas. The meeting was held at Clinton High School in November. The Sheriff believes modifying plans in the event this happens in DeWitt County should be a constant process. He feels positive things out of these events need to be better preparation and being more ready to respond.