Gun At Wilde Lake High School Reported

COLUMBIA, MD — A student brought a pellet gun to Wilde Lake High School on Friday, according to the school's principal. The Howard County Police Department is investigating the matter, and the student will be disciplined according to the Howard County Public School System policy.

Wilde Lake High School Principal Rick Wilson thanked students for alerting authorities to the potentially dangerous situation.

"Earlier this morning, several students reported to school staff that one of our students was in possession of a gun," Wilson wrote in a note to parents on Friday, Feb. 22. "Immediately, school staff, including our School Resource Officer, followed established protocols and procedures, and the gun was secured without incident or harm to any individual. The gun was subsequently determined to be a pellet gun."

Regardless of whether it was a real gun or a BB gun, it is a violation of the Howard County Public School System's policy on weapons to possess on school property or school bus any object that would lead a person to believe it was or would be used as a weapon.

"I want everyone to know how proud I am of our students for promptly and responsibly coming forward with this information," Wilson wrote in a letter to families Friday afternoon. "Their actions allowed Wilde Lake staff and the Howard County police to ensure the safety of everyone today."

Based on the school system's weapons policy, "a student who possesses a firearm on the school property, on a school bus, in a vehicle located on school property, or at a school-sponsored activity will be expelled from the Howard County Public School System for a minimum of one year. The Superintendent may, on a case-by-case basis, and under certain circumstances, specify a shorter period of expulsion or an alternate educational setting for a student who has brought a firearm onto school property."