Spokane Public Schools confirmed a Shadle Park High School student was arrested on-campus on Monday.
SPS says the student was involved in an off-campus assault and was taken into custody at the school. The student was armed with a gun, but was taken into custody without incident.
SPS says a lockdown at the school during the incident was not necessary, but some parents were left wondering why.
“It’s upsetting,” said Stephanie Dawn, a parent at the school. “Especially the fact that we send our kids to the school thinking they are going to be safe, that the school district has the best interest in our children, and for my daughters to message me because they feel unsafe is disheartening.”
The school was not put on lockdown because there was no immediate threat to the students, staff, or public. Officer Shane Phillips says by the time they learned the identity of the male student, a school resource officer was standing nearby and was able to apprehend him immediately.
Dawn says she learned what was going on from her daughters and social media instead of the school.
“It’s a very inadequate response,” said Dawn. “The fact that there was someone one the campus with a gun without any notification to students or teachers was disheartening.”
The high school did deliver a robocall to parents at the end of the school day. A spokesperson with the district says they did not send a notification to parents earlier in the day because there was no immediate threat to the students, staff, or public.
The incident is still under investigation.
(story and photo: KHQ.com)