BOE Member, Off-Duty Officer, Left Gun In Bathroom At LI School: Supe

EASTPORT, NY — The off-duty police officer who left his gun in the bathroom of a Long Island high school Monday night is also a Board of Education member in the district, officials said Tuesday.

According to Suffolk County Police, the Internal Affairs Bureau is investigating an incident during which an off-duty member of the department inadvertently left his off-duty weapon in a school bathroom at the Eastport South Manor Junior Senior High School at 6:15 p.m. on December 11.

On Tuesday, Joseph Steimel, Superintendent of Schools, sent out a message to the community, calling what happened an "isolated incident."

"Upon a routine school cleaning, a member of our custodial crew found a handgun in a lavatory and immediately notified building security who worked with administration to enact an emergency protocol procedure," he said.

The building principal immediately notified the police and the district's security began a preliminary investigation; the restroom facility was secured by the security team and no individuals were permitted in the area until the police arrived to conduct a thorough investigation, he said.

"As part of that investigation, it was quickly determined that the weapon belonged to an off-duty police officer, who is a parent that used the bathroom shortly before the time and had inadvertently left it behind," Steimel said. "This information was determined quickly, as the off-duty officer was still in the building, in the very near vicinity of the lavatory. The off-duty officer returned to the restroom area and shared the information with our security officers."

The parent cooperated with the district's security team, as well as with the Suffolk County Police Department when they arrived on the scene for their investigation of the security situation, he said.

"Thankfully the matter was resolved quickly by the SCPD and without any further impact to our school safety and security," Steimel said, thanking the members of the district's custodial staff, security team and administration for "their quick action and attention to this important matter. Most importantly, I would like to recognize the SCPD for their swift attention to this safety situation and their ongoing partnership with our school community," he said.

Later in the day, Steimel sent an update: "As with any security matter, the district has completed a follow-up analysis to review the facts surrounding the incident and the protocols that were quickly put into action," he said.

Steimel said he did not share the identity of the off-duty officer because, "as with all matters of safety, individuals’ names and/or their professional positions within the district are not historically shared during such communications, both for privacy and legal reasons. However, the individual has shared his name publicly and I can now confirm that the off-duty police officer is a member of the Board of Education and that he was on campus for a BOE special session meeting last evening, coming directly from his job."

He did not elaborate on the man's name.

Steimel also addressed the timeline in which events unfolded: The weapon was found in the bathroom at about 6:24 p.m. and immediately reported to security, who secured the scene by 6:26 p.m., he said.

From there, the administrative team enacted district emergency protocols — including contacting the Suffolk County Police Department, Steimel said.

"Simultaneously, building administration alerted my office and the Board of Education of the matter, at which time the off-duty officer identified himself as the owner of the weapon and returned to the scene. All of this occurred in fluid motion over the course of approximately 15 minutes, during which time neither the weapon nor its location was accessible by anyone other than district personnel, our security team and the police on their arrival."

He added: "As such, the situation was not deemed an imminent threat and the ongoing operations of building activities remained uninterrupted, including our concert which had concluded at 6:34 p.m."

Steimel said he did not mean to "diminish the issue or the concerns that our families may have over the fact that a weapon was found in one of our schools. However, I do hope that these additional details help to explain the brevity in which the events transpired — in particular, how quickly the weapon was found, the scene secured and its owner identified. School safety and security remains our district’s top priority and we assure all families that we take these matters very seriously."

Steimel added that the district will continue to work to review and strengthen its security initiatives, protocols and procedures to further safeguard the ESM school community.