HUFFMAN, Texas – A student at Hargrave High School was arrested Monday after administrators were told he had a gun, officials said.
Officials at the Huffman Independent School District said in a Facebook post that they received a tip that the student had a gun in his backpack and wanted to hurt himself.
VIDEO: Concerned parents gather at Hargrave High School
“The student and backpack were immediately taken into custody, and the building has been placed on lockdown as a precaution as we continue to investigate the incident,” officials said in the post.
Officials said the child did have a gun, but they would not say whether it was loaded..
This was another in a series of threats at Houston-area schools after Friday's massacre at Santa Fe High School that killed 10 people.
Parents voice concern
Parents pledged to not let their children return to Huffman ISD schools for the rest of this school year unless drastic changes are made to increase security at all its campuses.
Hours after the incident involving the student and the gun, a standing-room-only crowd attended the school board meeting at Huffman ISD headquarters on Monday night.
"I don't think I've really ever felt any massive amount of danger, as far as it goes," said student Josh Ward, who was on campus at Hargrave High when the suspect was arrested.
"But this was a real change of pace."
Parents of students who attend Huffman ISD schools voiced their concerns Monday as other parents prepared to air theirs at a series of roundtable discussions headed by Gov. Greg Abbott in Austin beginning Tuesday. Lawmakers will meet with parents, students, educators and advocates on both sides of the gun debate to discuss potential legislative changes in light of the Santa Fe High School shooting.
After the incident on Monday, people said that schools are so-called soft targets and campus security needs to be hardened.
"We need to increase our presence as far as security, possibly armed security," said parent Chuck Ward.
Students also attended the school board meeting on Monday night.
"You can't ban guns. You can't limit control. It's against the Constitution," said senior Jonathan Milligan.
"But you can make sure people can have them safely."
Others hope the issue of proper parenting is raised in Austin. Lynne Ward, whose son is a student at Hargrave High, said parents should take a larger and more active role in stopping gun violence.
"I think the parents ultimately are responsible for paying attention to what your children are doing, who they're hanging out with, how they're acting, any kind of strange signs that are going on," said Ward.
Parents suggested having armed security or police officers on all Huffman ISD campuses campuses.
Several also recommended metal detectors and closed campuses.
This morning we received a tip that a Hargrave High School Student had a gun in his backpack and was intending to harm...
Posted by Huffman ISD on Monday, May 21, 2018
