Gun Found In Oakland 1st Grader's Backpack Was Loaded
OAKLAND (CBS SF) - A gun that was unknowingly brought to a West Oakland's elementary school in a first grader's backpack on Tuesday was loaded, a school district spokesman said Thursday.
The student and a teacher at PLACE @ Prescott School (formerly Prescott Elementary) both discovered the weapon, a 9mm handgun, at about 8:45 a.m. when the student opened the backpack and began taking out its contents,Oakland Unified School Districtspokesman Troy Flint said.
"The student did not know the gun was in the backpack," Flintsaid.
The gun had one bullet in its chamber, he said.
Officials were still investigating Thursday who put the weapon there, and Flint declined to discuss leads in the case.
Campus police were called to the classroom to remove the gun and investigate its origin. The student will not be punished, Flint said.
School officials were planning to hold information sessions for PLACE @ Prescott students about guns and violence in the wake of the discovery, and district police officers will likely conduct classroom visits with the school's violence counselor, Flint said.
He said there have been a handful of incidents in which guns were brought to elementary school campuses in the district in the last few years, but none at PLACE (Preparatory Literary Academy of Cultural Excellence), which is located at 920 Campbell St.
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