The fourth grader has been charged with two felonies accused of carrying a firearm to school in August, the Arizona state prosecutor’s office said Monday.
The 9-year-old has been charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a minor and one count of interfering with or obstructing an educational institution, the Pinal County Attorney’s Office said. The identity of the student has not been released.
The accusation stems from an incident at the Legacy Traditional School on August 25th. The Queen Creek Police Department said it responded to the school after receiving a report that a student was in possession of a firearm. Phoenix-based NBC affiliate KPNX reported at the time.
Police said another student had witnessed a classmate with a bullet the day before, and officers who responded to the school the next morning found a gun in the child’s backpack, KPNX reported.
Pinal County Prosecutor Kent Volkmer declined to press charges against the parents of the 9-year-old because, despite police recommendations, there was “no reasonable likelihood of conviction.”
“Given the inherent dangers associated with having guns on school campuses, the PCAO must take this seriously,” Volkmer said in a statement Monday.
“But it is important to understand that the juvenile justice system is focused on rehabilitation and behavioral remediation, and that is our focus.”
It is unknown whether the family has a lawyer. The Pinal County Attorney’s Office had no additional information about the agent.
