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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pistol found at Mead school

A seventh-grade student has been arrested and expelled for allegedly bringing a loaded handgun to a Mead school and stashing it in a bathroom Tuesday.

Another student was also expelled after Mead Middle School Principal Craig Busch acted on an anonymous tip and found the .38-caliber pistol loaded with five live rounds of ammunition. It was wrapped in a cloth and placed behind a toilet tank in the boys’ restroom.

“Mr. Busch did exactly the right thing, he immediately went to investigate (the rumor),” said Mead School District Superintendent Steve Enoch. “He was able to secure the gun right away.”

The school was not locked down during the incident, which began about 1 p.m.

Busch said a female student came to him and said she overheard a conversation in which another student said a boy had brought a gun to the school.

After getting the names of students who may be involved, Busch said, he continued to investigate and learned the location of the gun in about 30 minutes.

“I went down and grabbed the weapon immediately … there was no imminent danger,” Busch said. He called Spokane County sheriff’s deputies, who responded and began to interview the students involved.

The 13-year-old boy was arrested late Tuesday and booked into the Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center on suspicion of bringing a firearm onto school property, said Cpl. Dave Reagan, sheriff’s spokesman. The boy is also being charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, a felony, Reagan said.

Another boy who knew about the gun but failed to report it also received an emergency expulsion from the school, which has a zero-tolerance policy against weapons. Authorities did not release the name of either student.

Deputies were still investigating how the boy obtained the gun, Reagan said. The Taurus revolver has been traced to the west side of the state, he said.

It was not clear why he brought the gun to school.

“We don’t think there was intent to harm anybody,” Busch said. “He may have brought it to show some kids … we just don’t know at this point.”

Enoch said the incident happened too late in the day to notify parents or the student body of the incident. A letter will be sent home with students today.

The student who reported the gun may qualify for a reward from the “Keep Guns Outta School” program, Reagan said. The program, sponsored by Secret Witness, pays a $75 reward for tips that lead authorities to guns on school properties.

Students can call the Secret Witness tip line at 327-5111 to make a report. Callers do not have to give their name to be eligible for the reward.

The program led to the recovery of more than a half dozen firearms and knives at Spokane-area schools in 2004, Reagan said.

School district officials praised the girl for coming forward, and the other students for speaking up about the location of the weapon.

“We are not immune, no school district, no school is immune anymore to these kinds of random acts,” Enoch said. “I’m just really pleased one of the students came forward … so that nothing more came of this.”