DCPS: Terry Parker High School student arrested for bringing loaded firearm on campus

Jacksonville, FL — A Terry Parker High School student has been arrested for bringing a loaded firearm to campus Monday, according to the Duval County school district.

The principal, Megan McKinney, says thanks to other students, school staff was made aware of a possible weapon on campus leading to a Code Yellow lockdown at the school.

When Duval County School Police intervened, they say a loaded firearm was found in a trash can in one of the school's bathroom. The district says police were then able to identify and arrest the student responsible.

As a result of this, Duval County Schools Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene says metal detectors will be used to screen all students for the rest of this week.

"Given what we see around the country and the discovery of firearms on two of our campuses, we clearly need to accelerate the conversation about prevention efforts. Screening will be in place at Terry Parker while we review our current status and evaluate how we can enhance prevention efforts with the staffing available to us," says Greene.

At this point, DCPS has not identified the student.

READ: Message sent to Terry Parker High School families

“Hello Parents, this is Principal McKinney calling to follow up with you regarding the lockdown that occurred at our school today. First, I want to express my gratitude to those students who made us aware of a possible weapon on campus today. I am disappointed to confirm that we did in fact have a student bring a firearm to campus. In this case, the weapon was also loaded. Once we became are of this possibility, we put the school on lockdown while police became involved in the situation. Thanks again to the vigilance of our students and the quick and effective responsiveness of law enforcement, our school police arrested the suspect, and he is in custody. Because of this incident and to ensure the safety of our campus, we will be implementing walk through metal detectors and searches of student belongings for all students as they arrive to school for the remainder of the week. We are also aware of a social media post suggesting another threat. It has been investigated and is not credible. Nonetheless, we want to take every precaution to ensure a safe campus which is why we will employ campus wide screening for the remainder of the week as we work with the district to develop other prevention efforts. Thank you again for your patience and support today. As always, if you have input or questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to me through the school. Thanks and I look forward to seeing your children at school tomorrow.”