Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

School releases details of student's gun possession

Officials have released the details of a situation which lead to the suspension of a Gurdon High School student who brought a gun onto the school campus recently.

According to Gurdon Superintendent Bobby Smithson, the incident began when an anonymous call was received at the school that the student, a junior at GHS, had a handgun in his truck that was parked on the school parking lot. After the call was received, Smithson said the student was brought into the high school office and questioned.

While being asked about the presence of a firearm, Smithson said the student denied having a handgun, but he admitted that there was a .22 rifle in the truck. The student told district officials that the firearm was not his but that it belonged to another student with whom he had been hunting. The other student apparently left the gun in the truck.

Clark County Deputy Thomas Free, who is also the GHS resource officer, then searched the students truck and found the .22 rifle.

Its a serious thing, Smithson said of the incident.

Despite the seriousness of the event, Smithson said the school was not placed under lock-down once officials found out the firearm might be on campus.

He didnt get out waving it, and he didnt threaten anybody, Smithson said.

In accordance with the Gurdon High School student handbook, Smithson recommended to the Gurdon School Board that the student be expelled.

Students found to be in possession on the school campus of a firearm shall be recommended for expulsion for a period of not less than one year, the handbook states. The School Board shall have the discretion to modify such expulsion recommendation for a student on a case-by-case basis.

The Gurdon School Board did not, in fact, expel the student for one year. They instead placed him on home-bound status for the remainder of the current school year which ends May 31.

On home-bound status, the student will be able to complete all academic work and receive all credits as long as passing grades are kept, Smithson said. The student will be able to resume normal classes in the fall.

The student will also have to undergo evaluation by a licensed professional as to his state of mind before coming back to class.

Although the law prohibits the possession of a firearm on school campus, Smithson said the school will not be pressing criminal charges in the matter.

One reason the school board met in special session to hold the expulsion hearing on this matter was to send a message to other students that the school would not tolerate students bringing firearms to school, Smithson said.