The St. Louis Cardinals could soon be one of the first major league baseball teams to receive legal protections for making security upgrades if terrorists target Busch Stadium. U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri, is urging the Department of Homeland Security to give the organization’s SAFETY Act certification request full consideration. Sports teams, entertainment venues, and other groups can apply for the Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act, known as the SAFETY Act, if they take certain anti-terrorism measures.
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“Staying safe in large public spaces is on the minds of many Americans right now,” says McCaskill. “During the application process, the Cardinals have made many security improvements, including working more closely with local law enforcement on game days, upgrading their perimeter barriers and originating a new K-9 program.”
The certification would place limits on lawsuits that could be filed in the event of a terrorist attack at the venue.
McCaskill, who’s on the Senate’s Homeland Security Committee, says she commends the Cardinals organization for proactively taking this step to improve security.
“The Cards are doing everything within their power to keep their fans safe,” McCaskill says. “With recent terrorist attacks around the world on stadiums, concert venues, and other public spaces, it’s more important than ever that we’ve got robust counterterrorism efforts in place.”
The Cardinals applied for certification in July.