It was one month ago today that a Penn State student walked into a State College bar and left with a fatal stab wound.

That's one month local bars should have spent working to ensure that such a preventable tragedy does not happen again in Happy Valley.

The State College Police Department has spoken out in favor of metal detectors as a relatively inexpensive means of preventing weapons -- such as the 3-inch blade that allegedly stabbed Michael Donahue -- from ever entering private establishments that serve alcohol.

Donahue died at Mount Nittany Medical Center on Feb. 19 from a puncture wound to his heart two days after an incident at Club Love, 129 1/2 Pugh St. Police arrested Josephy A. Ventura, who has been charged with first-degree murder.

The incident has prompted police to criticize local bars for not investigating the effectiveness of metal detectors in preventing crime and promoting safety.

It is fortunate that the incident at Club Love, while tragic, is not a common occurrence in State College. However, the rarity of such a tragedy does not justify complacency and hesitation at instituting metal detectors as a means of preemptive action.

Walking through a metal detector on your way to a buying a beer might be somewhat of an inconvenience. And hand-held devices might be awkward at first. But these are not valid excuses when it comes to preventing tragedy.

Alcohol consumption is a staple of college life at Penn State and on nearly every other university campus nationwide. But alcohol alone cannot be blamed when individuals are able to enter a bar carrying a knife or a gun.

A reasonable amount of responsibility must be placed on such establishments to ensure the safety of their patrons and their staff.

Metal detectors are certainly not a foolproof method. But they might be enough to prevent another bar fight from escalating to the point of what happened on Feb. 17.

The decision to implement hand-held metal detectors -- which cost about $200 -- or walk-through metal detectors -- which cost between $4,000 and $6,000 -- should, however, be left to the owners of private establishments. Legislation requiring detectors at Pennsylvania bars could potentially impede on the rights of owners and patrons.

Metal detectors at the Crowbar, 420 E. College Ave., or the Phyrst, 111 1/2 Beaver Ave., would undoubtedly be something for State College to get used to.

But someday they might save a life, and that fact alone should make this issue a no-brainer for local bars.