Girl, 16, suspended for having loaded gun at Robeson County school, district says

ST. PAULS, N.C. (WBTW) — A 16-year-old sophomore has been suspended from school for a year in Robeson County after she was found with a loaded handgun at St. Pauls High School, according to a news release from the school district.

The gun was found during a search by St. Pauls High School administrators and law enforcement officers after school officials were notified about a possible gun on campus, the release said.

It’s the second time during the current school year that a student has been suspended for a year for having a loaded gun on the St. Pauls High School campus. The first incident in September involved a 15-year-old.

In the most recent incident, there were no injuries reported and no reports of threats being made to other students.

“All appropriate disciplinary action has been taken in the case,” the release said. “The Public Schools of Robeson County yields information concerning charges to law enforcement who assisted in the investigation.”

Jessica Horne, the school district’s communications officer, said the district’s policy clearly states that such behavior will not be tolerated.

“We are grateful that the school’s administration was notified of a gun on campus,” Horne said in the release. “We take incidents like this very seriously. “The safety of all students is our top priority. We continue to ask anyone who knows of a possible weapon on any of our school campuses to speak up so we can continue to keep our campuses safe and secure.”

Horne said random searches are conducted at the high school level at least once per week. She said keeping them random prevents from students planning around the searches.

She added metal detectors are used at the entrance to sporting events at the high school.