The student brought a loaded 25-caliber handgun to a city school on Dec. 19, and the weapon had been stolen from a residence in November, according to Hamilton Police.
FIRST REPORT: Loaded gun on freshman school student was loaded, police say
The teen, who was represented by attorney Richard Hyde at the hearing, entered a not true or not guilty plea to both charges, according to Rob Clevenger, court administrator.
Visiting Judge Thomas Lipps ordered the teen to stay housed in the county juvenile detention center until his pre-trial hearing on Jan. 16.
According to a letter sent to parents and guardians of the school’s students, school officials “immediately put the student in the custody of our (Hamilton Police) School Resource Officer (SRO) and standard safety procedures were conducted that resulted in the removal of the weapon and student from the building within minutes of the discovery.”
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After that, police and school officials determined “there was no other viable threat present and no lockdown was deemed necessary,” according to the letter, signed by Nancy Hulshuit, the school’s principal. “The school resumed on our regular schedule.”
The district also plans to expand use of random metal-detecting wands, mostly in schools with the higher grades, as students enter schools in the morning as a deterrent for students taking weapons into the buildings. Such wands have been used at football games and other school events.
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