BREAKING: Student found with gun at Fremont school

Fremont police were called to Milliken Park Elementary School Thursday morning after a student was discovered to be in possession of a handgun.

The handgun had a loaded magazine inserted into the firearm, however there was no bullet in the firing chamber, officials noted.

According to press releases from both the Fremont Public Schools and the Fremont Police Department, there were no injuries and no threats were made with the firearm. Officials from both entities said the student did not realize he had brought a real handgun to the school.

Hope Pierce, a spokesperson for the Fremont Public Schools, stated in a press release the unloaded handgun was found in the backpack of a fourth-grade student at Milliken Park Elementary School.

In a telephone interview with the Fremont Tribune, Pierce said an astute homeroom teacher monitoring the students in her class shortly after 8 a.m. saw something suspicious in regard to students congregating together, leading to the discovery of the firearm.

“Several students were gathered around the student with a backpack, and the teacher went to go over and see what the students were looking at, and saw the gun in the backpack and got that taken care of immediately,” Pierce explained. “This is a very rare occurrence. In November of 2018, there was an Airsoft pistol found at the high school. At the time, the school was put into lockdown because they didn’t know if it was real or not.”

Pierce said the teacher who found the firearm escorted the student to the administrative office at the school, noting that the child did not resist and was fully compliant with the teacher and staff.

As the student was taken to the administrative office, school officials contacted the Fremont Police Department.

Fremont police Capt. Kurt Bottorff said in a press release that at 8:19 a.m., “officers responded to Milliken Elementary School in reference to a juvenile student bringing a firearm to school.”

“Officers arrived and had contact with school officials and the student. No direct threat was made towards any student or staff,” Bottorff stated in the press release. “An investigation revealed the complaint to be valid and there was no ongoing threat to those in the school or general public. The investigation is continuing.”

In a telephone interview with the Fremont Tribune, Bottorff said the investigation into the incident has many factors, including who owned the firearm and how the child acquired the gun and took it to the school.

“He is an elementary student of Milliken school. It was a male student. It was a handgun,” Bottorff said. “We do know who the owner of the firearm is. It was collected as evidence. There are all kinds of laws related to firearms, there is child abuse, child neglect … you could go down those avenues. All of this will be looked at.”

In the school district press statement, Associate Superintendent Brad Dahl assured the community, students, district staff and parents that there were no injuries and all staff and students are safe following the police response.

“Police were immediately called, responded and were in control of the situation. The initial investigation has revealed the student believed the gun to be a toy and brought it to school to show others. No staff or students were threatened or harmed,” Dahl explained in the press release. “Thank you to the teacher that reported this incident. The protocol we have in place worked. A staff member noticed something out of the ordinary and intervened immediately. The Fremont Police were called, responded and began their investigation.”

Pierce stated district officials sent a “communication” to parents which, “encouraged them to reinforce the following points with their student: schools are a safe place; teachers and staff help keep students safe; and reminded stakeholders of the motto, ‘If you see something, say something! If you know something, tell someone!’”

In addition to communicating with parents, Pierce said fourth-grade students at the school were visited by school administrators, teachers and counselors who spoke to the students about safety in the classroom as well as any concerns that may have arisen.

“Fremont Public Schools takes all situations seriously, student and staff safety is our top priority,” Dahl said in the release.