Male student found in possession of unloaded gun at Sparkman 9th Grade School

HARVEST, Ala. (WAFF) - A student was found with an unloaded handgun at Sparkman 9 on Wednesday morning.

In a statement from Principal Marcia McCants, she detailed how a school resource officer (SRO) immediately located the student and his belongings after receiving information about the gun being on campus.

The unloaded gun was found after a search of the student’s backpack.

The student was taken into custody by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

Principal McCants added that the student would be disciplined according to the school system’s code of conduct.

The Sparkman 9 campus experienced no disruption of the school day and heightened security measures were not needed to resolve the incident. The Madison County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate.

Read the full statement from Principal McCants:

Sparkman Families,

This is Ms. Marcia McCants, Principal of Sparkman 9.

This email is to inform you of a situation on our campus Wednesday morning. We want to ensure you have accurate information.

As the school day was beginning, campus administrators received information that a student may have a weapon on campus. Our School Resource Officer acted immediately, placing the student and his belongings in custody. During the search of the student’s backpack, an unloaded handgun was located. The Madison County Sheriff’s Office has taken the student into custody. The Sheriff’s Office is now handling the incident. The student will also be disciplined according to the Madison County School System’s Student Code of Conduct.

Due to the quick actions of our campus administrators and our School Resource Officer, there was no disruption to the school day, and we avoided having to heighten our security measures on campus.

There’s nothing more important to us than the safety of our students. I am reaching out to you so you have accurate information and can discuss it with your child if they have any questions when they get home from school.

We take this incident seriously, and I ask for your help addressing the critical issue of student safety. We encourage students to always report safety concerns to school administrators, teachers, or a School Resource Officer.

Thank you for your support and assistance in keeping our campus safe for children.

Respectfully,

Ms. Marcia McCants

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