KERNS, Utah (ABC 4 News) – A 6th grade student at West Kerns elementary school, who brought a gun to class because he said he was worried after the shootings in Connecticut, has been charged with bringing a deadly weapon to school and three counts of aggravated assault.
The school was made aware of the situation Monday afternoon around 3 p.m. when two students told a teacher that the student was threatening other kids at school with a gun. The Granite School District tells ABC 4 News, the teacher immediately took that student to the principal’s office. It was later learned the gun was in the boys backpack. He was arrested Monday afternoon and taken to juvenile detention.
District officials say the gun didn’t belong to the student’s parents, but a family member who had moved into the home recently.
Some parents and faculty told ABC 4 news they were frustrated with delay in information. Many didn’t find out till two hours after the incident.
Parent Gary Nelson said, “Why wasn’t everyone informed? My understanding is it was handled quickly not to cause any panic.”
Granite School District Spokesperson Ben Horsley explained, “It was obviously a tumultuous time and it was difficult to get a lot of information confirmed let alone relayed in a timely manner. We apologize for that but we were doing the best we could and student safety is always going to be our primary concern in a situation like this.”
District officials say the gun didn’t belong to the student’s parents, but a family member who had moved into the home recently.
