A Dallas area lawmaker plans to amend legislation to specify the type of ammunition that can be used by school marshals in an active shooter situation.

Texas State Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas, met with representatives of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement and ballistics experts and their recommendation on which type of frangible ammunition is the best will be implemented into the program.

Frangible ammunition is designed to disintegrate upon impact with a hard surface, but ballistic experts have raised concerns that the bullets could pass through softer building materials such as sheet rock walls or the body of the intended target and endanger innocent bystanders.

Villalba said the legislation will be amended to say that no school marshal will carry ammo unless that ammo has been TCOLE certified and approved.

“There are multiple types of frangible ammo and after speaking with experts yesterday (Nov. 15) who came to our office, they said there are a number of different types of ammo that can work and will work and are frangible,” Villalba said.

Villalba has chosen to keep the requirement that school marshals use frangible ammo based on his talks with experts although frangible ammo is not used by any major law enforcement entity in the U.S. It is typically used for training purposes and only disintegrates when it hits hardened steel.

Ken Alexander, an expert in the field of ammunition who has worked with the FBI, brought worries to the forefront about frangible ammunition being used and the bullet going through the suspect’s body and hitting an innocent bystander. Buford Boone, a retired FBI supervisory special agent who ran the FBI Ballistic Research Facility in Quantico, Va., also expressed concerns about the use of this type of ammo.

Villalba said there is no ammo that will completely eliminate any collateral damage and that frangible is the closest we have to be able to stop an attacker and minimize collateral damage.

When a bullet is fired from a gun, there is always a chance, even if it is frangible, to pierce drywall, he said.

“Even frangible, in certain circumstances, will pierce drywall,” he said.

Sgt. Wade Parham, instructor with the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training program, or ALERT, was one of the experts who met with Rep. Villalba.

He said he is currently testing a variety of frangible and conventional ammunition.

“There are some types of frangible on the market that may do what we’re looking for it to do, and we’re testing for that for possible inclusion as authorized by TCOLE,” Parham said. “But you’re not going to find any pistol ammunition on the market that is going to do both; break up and fail to penetrate walls. That’s just going to be a given.”

Frangible, he said, may shatter when it hits certain building materials found in schools such as a hard tile floor, brick or concrete.

“Most people think frangible means round nosed solid bullets used for shooting steel targets in ranges which will penetrate wall board and is also not suitable for shooting bad guys. It will go right out of him and keep going into anything else,” he said. “It’s not meant for self defense purposes. There is some ammo that is better suited for self-defense purposes that may also be safer in an institutional or school environment. That’s what we’re looking at and further adopting those results.”

Villalba wrote the Protection of Texas Children Act, passed in 2013, in response to the Sandy Hook school shooting, in which an armed intruder killed 20 elementary school students in Newtown, Conn.

The legislation created the position of school marshal, a volunteer person in a school whose role is only known by a school administrator and local law enforcement authorities.

Villalba wove in specifics such as training requirements, mental health evaluation, firearms proficiency requirements and the use of frangible ammunition.

“We want to ensure legislation is revised so that it will maximize the safety of our children and safeguard against an active shooter, protecting our children, our students, and do everything we can to find the best way to provide that last line of defense and keep others safe in those horrible situations,” Villalba said.

State Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, said it is good news that Villalba is open to amending the legislation and that this can make a good idea better when bringing in information from experts.

“Technology changes all of the time and stories like this bring to life what needs to be changed,” Phelan said.

Phelan said he looks forward to the Legislature meeting in January and furthering the discussion on the issue.

“It sounds like we needed to tweak the bill, and the author of the bill is willing to talk. I look forward to working with Jason (Villalba),” he said.