In the wake of the deadly shooting at a Newton, Conn. elementary school, Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha said today the city is prepared should there be a similar incident on Oahu.

“I can tell you that we’ve been prepared to address these kinds of incidents,” he said. "We work very closely with the schools, the DOE and especially with the shopping malls, so we have certain contingency plans already in place and it’s always being refined.”

He also said that patrol division commanders have been notified to let patrol officers “know to be prepared in the event that there’s a copycat incident” and that the department’s Special Services Division had also been notified.

Kealoha said he believes Hawaii’s strict gun control laws have contributed to the state’s low rates of violent crime compared to other states.