FORT SMITH, Ark — A Northside High School student was arrested the first week of the school year after a gun was found in their backpack, the school district said in a statement.
According to the Fort Smith School District, school administration and district police officers responded to Northside at 2:45 p.m. after a report of a student vaping. After officers searched the student, a gun was found in their backpack, officials said.
In the statement released on Wednesday, school officials said nobody was harmed in the incident, “thanks to the diligent surveillance work and collaborative efforts of campus police and school administrators.”
The firearm was confiscated, and the student was arrested with a felony. School officials said the case was referred to the Fort Smith Prosecutor’s Office.
Fort Smith Public Schools Police Chief Bill Hollenbeck says that student cannot be identified, but they were arrested and charged with carrying a firearm on school property.
“We’re still trying to determine if there were any threats. But on the surface, there appears to be no targeted threat of violence of any nature," Chief Hollenbeck said.
He says the relationship between the school and its officers made it possible to keep everyone safe.
“We're working together trying to find out, you know, the source of where the actual handgun came from. So, again, you know, we look at it as a win, that all the protocols and the training from both the staff at Northside and our officers all came together to keep the students and staff and the public safe,” he said.
Hollenback says he knows this is scary for both parents and students, and wants to remind parents of the importance of staying involved in their child's life.
The district says per the student handbook, any student found in possession of a firearm will be recommended for expulsion for a period of no less than one year.
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