According to the National Crime Prevention Council, the move to clear backpacks at public schools was an effort to promote student safety. School safety officers can readily see what is inside a student's backpack, leading to the discovery of drugs and weapons.
According to the Kids Safe report, students were unable to hide items of distraction inside their clear backpacks and laptop bags. Education administrators have reported a vast decrease in the number of toys and electronic items brought in the school due to the clear backpacks-only rule.
As of 2010, schools in 35 states required students to carry only clear backpacks on school property. A study conducted by the Rand Corp. sites an 8 percent decrease in school violence in 1999. Weapons deterrence policies, such as clear and mesh backpacks, are noted as successful measures that have prompted the decrease in students bringing weapons into the classroom.