The suspect, who is a freshman at the high school, was arrested about 1 p.m. Monday by School Resource Officer Brandon Highley after a search of his backpack revealed a gun was inside. He was taken to the Butler County Juvenile Detention Center.
A teacher at the high school was tipped off by a student that the suspect had a gun in his backpack. The student’s alert came shortly after a school shooting at Madison Jr./Sr. High School injured four students.
Muterspaw stressed there is no connection between the shooting at Madison and the student with a gun at Middletown High School.
The police chief praised the quick action of the SRO, teachers, school administrators and the student who reported the information.
“These incidents could have been a lot worse than what they were,” Muterspaw said of the incidents in Middletown and Madison. “It was a long day for everyone.”
Muterspaw said “it’s very rare” that a student is arrested at the high school for having a gun, adding in instances were there has been a concern it has usually turned out to be a fake gun or a BB gun in a student’s possession.
It is unclear when the suspect will appear before a judge because “we haven’t gotten subpoenas yet, so (we’re) unsure (of) court date,” Muterspaw said.
The student has been suspended pending an expulsion hearing, MHS Principal Carmela Cotter said. She did not know when an expulsion hearing would be held, but noted they usually happen a few days after the suspension so the accused’s parents, guardians or other representatives can be present.
Cotter declined to identify the student or the teacher who alerted her to the weapon at the school, but said their actions should be celebrated.
“That’s what we’re trying to do here as we build relationships with students so if they or friends are hurting, they can tell us so we can help,” Cotter said. “I think he was listening. I think he was thinking. I think he was aware that someone was in trouble, and he had a responsibility to alert us so we could be responsive.”
The high school went on lockdown Monday morning after news spread about the shooting at Madison Jr./Sr. High School where four students were wounded by a 14-year-old suspect with a .380 caliber handgun. Once the lockdown was lifted later that afternoon, Cotter went on the school’s building announcement system and commended her staff and students for following lockdown protocols. She also reminded students about the importance of reporting suspicious activity if they see it or if they notice a student hurting in some way.
After Cotter’s remarks, teachers reiterated the message in their classrooms. That’s when a student came forward and told a teacher about a male student at the high school having a handgun in his backpack in his locker.
Muterspaw said school officials acted quickly and handled everything correctly, which minimized the potential for a negative outcome.
“As a parent, I knew the school and SRO had it under control,” said the police chief, whose son is a senior at MHS.
Muterspaw said his advice to parents is to tell their children “do what the student did in this incident, report suspicious behavior.”
Cotter said attendance at the high school today “was a hair down” at 90.3 percent. She said two students called the school today and said they would not be coming because of the shooting at Madison on Monday.
“A couple of kids said they were anxious after what happened yesterday,” Cotter said. “They’re aware and processing it in the back of their minds. They’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing.”
Cotter added that some students at Middletown High School were wearing red ‘M’s” in support of the students at Madison.
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