‘Ultimate terror:’ Parents alarmed after student brings pistol to middle school

UNION COUNTY, N.C. — A student at Sun Valley Middle School may face charges after allegedly bringing an unloaded, semi-automatic pistol to school Monday morning, said the Union County Sheriff’s Office.

The district said multiple students reported the gun. The school’s resource officer then found the student’s backpack in the back of a classroom, containing the gun and a magazine with a round of ammunition.

‘Ultimate terror’

Parent Amber McDowell said her sixth grader didn’t hear about the gun until she pulled him out of school.

“I shouldn’t have to fear for my child to go to school. And now, I don’t even want him to come back,” McDowell said.

Union County Public Schools confirmed staff didn’t put the school on lockdown.

A spokesperson said that was because deputies had the student in custody and seized the gun within minutes.

McDowell isn’t happy with that reasoning.

“It’s come to the point where it’s between my child’s safety or their education, and their safety is more important than an education,” she said.

McDowell wants to see metal detectors and clear backpacks in the middle school.

“Ultimate terror,” said parent Toya Pratt. “As a parent, so much is going on in the world, so if something like that happens at one of your kid’s schools it’s terrifying, very terrifying.”

Pratt said her sixth-grade daughter texted her when she heard about the gun prior to the school sending out an alert.

“Very scary,” Pratt said. “Being a parent and getting a text message like that, it does kind of startle your day.”

Pratt was relieved no one was hurt and doesn’t want it to happen again.

“I’m glad they were able to find the gun,” Pratt said.

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