Middle schooler had gun, ammunition and list of targets at school, Washington cops say
.jpg "Washington police arrested a middle school student after receiving word that they had a gun and ammunition in their possession.")
A middle school student in Moses Lake, Washington, was arrested after being found with a gun and ammunition, Moses Lake Police said in a news release.
According to the release, which was shared on Facebook, police were told on Monday, March 14, that a student at Chief Moses Middle School had made threats to “shoot up” the school and that they had a firearm on campus. Officers contacted the student and said they found him with a pistol and two magazines of ammunition.
The student also had a list of potential targets, police said in the release. The school district notified the students on the list and is “taking steps to offer services to affected staff and students,” police said.
In a March 14 statement, the Moses Lake School District said school administrators received the report that a student had a gun in their possession at around 9:45 a.m.
The student and their backpack were removed from the classroom, the firearm was confiscated, and the student was arrested and removed from campus, district superintendent Carole Meyer said in the statement. The school did not go into lockdown because the student was “immediately detained,” Meyer said.
In a series of updates later that day, Meyer added that the student was an eighth-grader and that officers recovered the weapon and ammunition “within minutes of the report.”
“In addition to criminal charges, the student will be referred to the juvenile court system and face disciplinary action,” Meyer said.
“We are also extremely proud of the students that came forward and notified our security officers, allowing us to address the situation quickly and efficiently,” Meyer said. “We can never underestimate the role we all – students, parents, and teachers – play in keeping our schools safe.”
Moses Lake is about 177 miles southeast of Seattle.
This story was originally published March 15, 2022 at 1:31 PM with the headline "Middle schooler had gun, ammunition and list of targets at school, Washington cops say."