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Middle school student in custody for bringing gun to school
A 13-year-old middle school student in Prince George’s County is accused of bringing a loaded ghost gun to school.
FORT WASHINGTON, Md. - Police in Prince George's County have taken a 13-year-old student into custody for being in possession of a gun at school.
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The incident was reported Tuesday morning – just two days before summer break – at Isaac J. Gourdine Middle School in Fort Washington.
Gourdine Middle School went into lockdown as police rushed to the school and began searching for the 13-year-old. Authorities were searching in what was described to be an 8th-grade basement area, according to police radio communication.
Police didn’t release a photo but tell FOX 5 that the teen was found with a fully-loaded ghost gun in their waistband.
A source describes the gun as a P80 semi-automatic handgun loaded with 17 bullets — one of them in the chamber.
States Attorney Aisha Braveboy’s office is waiting to learn whether the 13-year-old will be held on multiple charges, that police say include having a dangerous weapon on school property.
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"Guns kill. And there is no reason for a 13-year-old or any student to possess a gun and to bring it into a school building," she told FOX 5. "It will be treated seriously."
Police say they have recovered three ghost guns at Isaac J. Gourdine Middle School this school year.
Both the states attorney and police chief say the student who told an adult about his armed classmate should be commended.
Authorities say no one was injured. The incident is now under investigation.
Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks released this statement following the incident:
"The student who alerted trusted adults about what they observed this morning is to be commended for speaking up. It’s absolutely unacceptable that a child would even have access to a gun. The government is doing everything it can to keep our children engaged; we have provided summer jobs to every young person who applied, we have the Alsobrooks Summer Passport program starting, and we have programs available through M-NCPPC. The government is working to provide resources but I also believe that it’s critical our parents step up. Parents should know where their children are and what they’re doing. As we experience children committing a bulk of the violent crimes we see, we need the whole community to step up and help to support these youth."