Chaos Settles in Orcutt After Student Is Found With Empty Firearm
ORCUTT, Calif. (KEYT) - A student at Pine Grove Elementary School in Orcutt is accused of bringing a firearm on campus.
Officials say the situation may have been scary but it was handled quickly and smoothly.
Sheriffs were on the scene at Pine Grove School in Orcutt shortly after 1:00 Wednesday, responding to a call that a student had a firearm.
“I think anytime you have an incident like this, it it's unsettling,” says Dr. Holly Edds, Orcutt Union School District Superintendent. “Our staff immediately put protocols in place that we have practiced and trained for.”
District officials say the incident was resolved smoothly within a short time span.
“The risk was assessed that there was no imminent threat at the time,” says Dr. Edds. “And so the incident was handled and contained very quickly. From the time it was reported from that student that reported it to a staff member to when the incident was resolved, it took less than ten minutes.”
Responding deputies recovered an unloaded firearm, and no ammunition was found.
“The firearm was unloaded, there was no ammunition, so there was no ability or plan to use that firearm on campus,” says Raquel Zick, spokesperson for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office says this incident is a strong reminder of how important it is to speak up, and that the student who alerted school staff did the right thing.
“We did not place the school into any of the standardized response protocols,” says Zick. “The firearm was booked for safekeeping and deputies will be following up on the ownership and safe storage of that weapon.”
The names of the juveniles involved will not be released.
“The reality is children make mistakes,” says Dr. Edds. “But they don't learn from them when we discuss them publicly. So we're working closely with law enforcement. We're working closely with the families to address what happened.”
District officials say they’re proud of the way the staff handled of the situation.
The Sheriff’s Office says the investigation is ongoing, and they’re working with the district to determine appropriate follow-up actions.
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