Student Taken Into Custody After Being Found With Loaded Gun At Frederick Douglass High School
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Police arrested a student Friday at Frederick Douglass High School who carried a gun into the school.
The student was arrested after Baltimore City Schools Police recovered a loaded handgun on the student.
The student hid the gun and brought it through the metal detector at the school.
A student was detained after they brought a loaded handgun into Frederick Douglass High School today. At 11 on @wjz, hear from city school police and reaction from parents pic.twitter.com/Ajshy7HWDA
— Stetson Miller (@stetsonmreports) September 21, 2019
"The student was still able to conceal the weapon, and unfortunately, he was able to penetrate those safety boundaries," Sgt. Clyde Boatwright said.
Baltimore City Schools Police got information about the firearm from a staff member. An officer quickly acted and took the student into custody without incident.
The weapon was never used to threaten anyone, according to officials.
Baltimore City Schools released a statement in regard to the incident:
"Today, school administrators at Frederick Douglass High School notified Baltimore City School Police of a gun at the school. Officers responded, and officers quickly located and secured the weapon. At no time was the weapon used to threaten anyone, and the situation was quickly brought under control
Providing safe, secure, and positive climates for teaching and learning is City Schools' top priority. The student was taken into custody without incident. Under City Schools' student Code of Conduct, a student who brings a weapon on school grounds faces the maximum consequences, including possible permanent expulsion."
This is the second time this year there was an incident involving a gun at Frederick Douglass High School.
Related Coverage:
- Suspect Charged In Frederick Douglass High School Shooting And 2018 Murder
- Frederick Douglass High Staffer Hospitalized After Confronting Armed Suspect At The School's Entrance
In February, a special education assistant was shot by a man who was confronting the assistant about disciplining a family member.
Parents said it's disturbing to know someone once again brought a gun into the school.
"It's very upsetting," one parent told WJZ. "They need to beef up security or something."
"You could have hurt someone's kid or you could have hurt yourself," another parent said. "There ain't no excuse to have a gun in school."
City Schools Police tell WJZ since December 2016 there have been 26 firearms recovered from City Schools.
The debate over whether or not to arm City Schools Officers during school hours has been an ongoing debate.
Sgt. Boatwright, who heads the School Police Officers Union, said this latest incident is another example of why officers should be armed.
"How many incidents do you have to see before you see that there is a need to have that omnipresence of a police officer as a deterrent?" Boatwright said.