School officials say efforts to get students to report suspicious activity were instrumental in recovering two firearms at Volcano Vista High School this week.
A junior at the school faces felony charges after the weapons were reportedly found in his backpack and vehicle Tuesday. Another person on campus reported behavior that led school staff to contact the student.
A letter from Principal Melissa Sedillo to parents said the student didn’t express any intention to harm himself or anyone else.
“Nevertheless, the presence of any weapon on school grounds is a serious violation of our policies,” she wrote. “The student who brought the guns is facing severe consequences, up to and including expulsion and potential prosecution.”
Martín Salazar, a spokesperson for Albuquerque Public Schools, confirmed Wednesday the student was booked into the Bernalillo County Youth Services Center on two counts of unlawful possession of a deadly weapon on a school campus.
State law sets the basic sentence for someone convicted of a fourth-degree felony at 18 months of imprisonment.
“We discovered the firearms at Volcano Vista because someone spoke up,” he said. “We urge everyone to remain vigilant and promptly report any suspicious activities or concerns. We take all reported threats seriously and investigate. If you see something, say something.”
Other incidents
This is the second time this school year — which started a little more than a month ago — a firearm has been found on an APS campus. On Sept. 5, a Valley High School student was arrested after school staff reportedly found a handgun in his backpack.
“I want to stress that APS has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to guns on school campuses,” Salazar said. “Students found in possession of a firearm on a school campus face expulsion for a full calendar year in addition to criminal charges. District Attorney Sam Bregman has made it clear that anyone caught with a firearm at a school would face severe consequences through the criminal justice system.”
He said human intelligence — gathering information about possible rules violations from student and staff reports — is one of several tools APS uses to keep students safe.
“Our ‘see something, say something’ campaign has been highly effective,” Salazar said. “Since 2016, we’ve spent more than $40 million on things like cameras and alarms, door locks, fencing and gates, card access, and creating secure vestibules at schools.”
He said the district has also issued panic alert badges to staff that allow employees to call for help, activating ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate) protocols at their schools by clicking a button.
APS campuses have issued at least 14 shelter-in-place orders so far this school year. While that number includes one on Tuesday resulting from a telephone threat to Del Norte High School, Salazar said many of the orders are due to nearby police activity in the area and not indicative of an emergency on school grounds.
Once officers from various law enforcement agencies determined the Del Norte campus was secure, Salazar said, school officials lifted the shelter-in-place order.
He said there would be an increased police presence at Del Norte through Wednesday.