LANSING — A 12-year-old boy has been petitioned into juvenile court in connection with a disassembled gun found at Dwight Rich School of the Arts on May 22, the Ingham County Prosecutor’s Office said.
Lansing police said a boy, 12, was arrested after the weapon was found, and prosecutors said he was charged with carrying a concealed weapon in juvenile court.
Ingham County Prosecutor John Dewane declined to discuss details about the incident, saying an investigation into how the boy obtained the firearm was ongoing.
The gun found on the campus was unloaded and disassembled, Dwight Rich Principal Shannon Harris said in a message to school families over the Memorial Day weekend.
Metal detectors, more staff and other new safety measures were set to begin Tuesday, May 27, she said, “part of our commitment to maintaining a safe and secure learning environment for all.”
“We ask for your support in preparing your student for this new protocol,” Harris said in the letter. “We understand that this may feel like a significant change, but please know our goal is to create a secure environment where learning can continue without disruption.”
Dwight Rich has students from kindergarten through eighth-grade. It’s located on Hampden Drive, southwest of the Mt. Hope Avenue and Pleasant Grove Road intersection.
No injuries resulted from the May 22 incident, but several teachers raised concerns about the way the situation was handled,
Several teachers responded to Harris’ email to parents, expressing concerns about the district’s handling of the incident, according to an email chain obtained by the State Journal. One teacher asked why the school wasn’t put on restricted access after the weapon was found and administration was notified. Another said she was only made aware of the situation through her students.
“It was hard to comfort (the student) since I did not know what was happening,” the teacher wrote. ” … There is not communication to faculty from administration when such incidents are occurring.”
Harris said in the email to staff that the school followed all appropriate protocols.
Another incident involving weapons on school grounds happened on May 27, this time at Everett High School.
Police said two people were arrested after officers were called to the school for a report of a fight involving a knife. Officers didn’t find anyone in connection with that report, but police officials later said school officials found a gun on a 17-year-old male at the school. The teen was arrested and taken to the city lockup, they said.
A 50-year-old woman was later arrested at another location in connection with the original fight report, police added.
School officials gave a more detailed account of the incident involving the gun, saying the teen was a student who never came into the building for classes on May 27. After an altercation in the parking lot, school safety officers took him inside the building to a location away from staff and students, and that’s when they found the gun, officials said.
In a message to families, Everett Principal Amy Boyles said a family left the building and walked to the parking lot, where they “became involved in a hostile interaction with a student,” and “the student’s behavior became suspicious.”
Public safety officers moved the student to “a secure, remote location and discovered a weapon in the student’s possession,” the message said. The weapon was seized, and the matter was turned over to the police department, it said.
“Please be assured that the Lansing School District is dedicated to providing a safe and secure learning environment for all students and staff. We will continue to take proactive steps and work closely with law enforcement to uphold the safety and well-being of our school community.”
Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Boy, 12, charged in juvenile court after gun found at Lansing’s Dwight Rich school
Reporting by Ken Palmer, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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