A 7-year-old student brought a loaded gun to an elementary school in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood on Thursday, police say.
Boston police officers responded to Up Academy Holland School, located at 85 Olney Street, around 3:33 p.m. for a report of a student with a firearm and recovered the weapon from the student. Police did not say how the gun was discovered.
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The NBC10 Boston Investigators learned from a police source directly related to the investigation that it was a semi-automatic gun and it was found in the student's backpack. A police report later identified the gun as a black pistol with semi-automatic action.
Detectives are investigating the incident, and Mayor Michelle Wu said the person responsible for allowing access to this weapon will be held accountable.
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"No child should be near a weapon, much less directly endangered at such a young age," Wu said in a statement. "Thanks to the swift action and coordination of school staff, Boston police, and first responders, this situation was immediately identified and safely addressed.”
Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper said she was speechless after learning of what happened.
"I don’t have the words," she said in a statement. "This is truly devastating."
"We have to ask ourselves how a very young student becomes in possession of and gains access to a firearm," Skipper added.
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“A loaded gun is a different level of, you know, what does that say about us a city, as a society? How do we protect our youngest, most vulnerable students?” City Councilor Erin Murphy said while speaking to NBC10 Boston Thursday night.
Murphy says who knows what could have happened at Holland if the gun had been fired.
“Had they thought it was a toy, or not realizing, or got nervous, somebody could have easily been dead,” Murphy said.
“It’s scary," she added. "It’s scary for him, the child, knowing he’s exposed to that, for his classmates, his teacher.”
The situation comes on the same day Boston’s superintendent was called before City Council to address the rash of violence that’s taken place already this school year.
Skipper said the district is working every day with all of its city and state partners to address safety concerns, strategize new tactics to keep students safe, and create synergy in their responses to emergencies.
"We’re grateful to BPD and first responders who were on the scene immediately. But we cannot do this work alone," Skipper added. "When a young person gets access to a gun out of accessibility, we really have to ask ourselves, how does this happen?”
Commissioner Michael Cox said the Boston Police Department is focused on the proliferation of guns in the city and that it should be a priority for everyone to keep access to them away from children.
Police did not say what kind of disciplinary action the student could face.
Up Academy Holland serves more than 770 K-5 students, according to its website.
