Unloaded guns found in backpacks of 8-year-old, 14-year-old at separate Red Clay schools

An 8-year-old boy was found with an unloaded gun in his backpack at Shortlidge Elementary School on Thursday, shortly after a 14-year-old was also found with an unloaded gun in their backpack at A.I. du Pont Middle School, police confirmed.

The incidents do not appear to be connected.

Wilmington police were called to Shortlidge Elementary on Thursday after a constable found the gun. The department did not say what prompted the constable to look in the student's backpack but said the weapon was not loaded.

The discovery came following a separate incident at A.I. du Pont Middle School in Greenville that same morning, where another student, a 14-year-old, was also found with a gun.

According to Delaware State Police, school administrators learned that a student who takes the bus to school could "possibly be in possession of a gun."

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When the bus carrying the student arrived at the middle school, the teen was "escorted" off by the school resource officer and administrators. A search of the backpack led to the discovery of the unloaded gun.

Police said there were "no threats to the school or students" and the teen was charged with three felonies: underage gun possession, carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon inside a school zone.

Traci Murphy, executive director of the Delaware Coalition Against Gun Violence, said while the incidents were concerning on their own, it was especially upsetting that the guns were found within hours of one another.

She added that the 8-year-old's age was also remarkable, especially in light of the Virginia incident last month in which a 6-year-old is accused of shooting his teacher in a classroom.

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“It is the responsibility of adults to keep kids safe from gun violence," Murphy said. "Any firearm that ends up in the hands of a child is due to an irresponsible, negligent, reckless adult."

She added that residents, "and particularly parents," must be made aware of Delaware's safe storage law, which makes it a crime for a person to "intentionally or recklessly" leave a loaded gun "where a minor or other person prohibited by law, or 'unauthorized person,' can access the firearm."

While both guns in Thursday's incidents were not loaded, it remains unclear where the two got the weapons.

The Red Clay Consolidated School District did not immediately provide comment about the incidents. Both schools are located in the district.

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