BB Gun Found On Student At Pimlico School: Report

BALTIMORE, MD — A student with a BB gun was removed from Pimlico Elementary/Middle School on Thursday morning in Baltimore City, according to multiple reports. The report of a gun at the school in north Baltimore happened the day after 17 people were gunned down at a school in a high school in Florida.

The incident involving the BB gun reportedly happened prior to the start of the school day.

Pimlico Elementary/Middle starts at 7:45 a.m., according to Baltimore City Public Schools.

Before the first bell rang, school police learned that a student had threatened to bring a gun into the school so officers locked down the building until they found and removed the student and recovered the BB gun, according to WBAL.

"At no time did the student use the BB gun or threaten any students or staff members," Pimlico Principal LaJuan D. Alston said in a letter obtained by the Baltimore Fishbowl. Alston pledged that staff at Pimlico Elementary/Middle School would be taking "extra steps to make sure that students know they are safe."

In addition to the incident at Pimlico Elementary/Middle School on Thursday, there was a false report of a shooting at Harbor City High School, according to city school officials.

Also, Loch Raven High School was placed on lockdown in Baltimore County, where a 14-year-old was arrested in connection with bringing a pellet gun to school.

Thursday's incidents came less than 24 hours after 17 people were killed in a high school shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. According to ABC News, Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel said that there have been multiple "copycat" threats after the Valentine's Day massacre at the high school in the southeastern Florida town.

Baltimore City Schools CEO Sonja Santelises issued a letter on Thursday letting families and guardians know that Baltimore's school system was dedicated to curbing violence.

"Schools must be places where students and staff know they are safe, where parents and caregivers can send their children every morning with confidence that they will return whole and well every afternoon," Santelises said in a statement. "Our commitment to our students means doing everything in our power to
keep violence outside of our school doors. Our commitment to our society must also include
working together to stop these events from occurring."

The Baltimore City teachers union is requesting legislation requiring gun safety training in schools, says WJZ.

As of late January, at least three guns had been confiscated from students in Baltimore City Public Schools, according to WJZ, which reported two were in the course of a week at Carver Vocational-Technical High School and Excel Academy.

During the 2016-2017 school year, Fox Baltimore reported that there were six guns taken from students in Baltimore City Public Schools, as well as 22 knives and three Tasers, and school police said there was a 21 percent reduction in weapons violations over the past five years.

• Loch Raven High School Student Arrested, Pellet Gun Found: Police
• 17 Florida School Shooting Victims Identified
• Student Killed In Renaissance Academy Stabbing: Police

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