More details on child with gun at Asheville school: charges, information about gun

ASHEVILLE - A student who officials said was found with a gun at Asheville Middle School Feb. 29 has been charged with a felony.

That is despite the gun, a Glock pistol, not being loaded, according to recent information from an Asheville Police Department spokesperson and an APD incident report.

The student was found with the gun during a search conducted by school administrators with a parent of the student present, according to Principal Jo Landreth, who spoke about the incident the day the handgun was found.

The student, whose name and age were redacted from the police report along with other information, was charged with felony possession of a firearm on school grounds, said APD spokesperson Samantha Booth.

According to the report, police also believed there was evidence of a misdemeanor drug offense.

"After the completion of APD's investigation and consultation with the Department of Juvenile Justice the charge of possession of a firearm on school property was levied against the juvenile with cooperation of the DJJ."

Asked by the Citizen Times if the gun was loaded, Booth said it was not, but added, "regardless of there not being ammunition it is still a chargeable offense."

Booth declined to answer further questions, citing protections in juvenile law.

"Due to strict North Carolina Public Records Laws concerning juvenile involvement, there is little information I am able to legally release," the APD spokesperson said.

Asheville City Schools spokesperson April Dockery did not respond.

School crime reporting: Asheville City Schools crimes: weapons, rapes not reported to NC School Board?

Questions asked of her by the Citizen Times included if officials knew how the child got the gun, why they might have brought it to school or if a parent could face any culpability, a question that has now been broached in the case of a Michigan 2021 school shooting that saw the mother of a student mass shooter found guilty Feb. 6.

According to a statement made Feb. 29 by Dockery, the gun was not being carried by the student but was found with their belongings. School administration "strictly adhered to safety protocols to ensure the well-being of students and staff," the school system spokesperson said.

At the school March 4, a police car could be seen positioned not far from the front doors, though it was not clear why the car was there. Asheville Middle is located in the South French Broad neighborhood, south of downtown.

The student was taken into custody the day of the incident by juvenile justice officials. That department's spokesperson, Matt Debnam, declined to say whether the student was still in the department's custody March 4, citing juvenile confidentiality laws.

Landreth, the principal, said school administration was "following a thorough investigation of an isolated incident" when the search was conducted and the "handgun was discovered." APD was immediately notified, Landreth said.

Along with reporting such incidents to law enforcement, North Carolina law requires that state education officials also be notified.

In dozens of cases, that is something Asheville City Schools failed to do, according to a 2023 Citizen Times investigation.

The reporting is a way for education officials and state legislators to make decisions regarding school safety. It also allows parents to see what incidents have happened at different schools.

More: Asheville schools adopts SB 49 policies; Board chair calls law 'misguided and obtuse'

PEAK Academy says it's closing the achievement gap. Asheville council will give it $501K

Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at [email protected], 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: More details on child with gun at Asheville school: charges, gun info