SEATTLE — A student at Seattle’s Nathan Hale High School reportedly threatened a classmate with a gun on Wednesday.
Seattle police officers were initially told by a parent that a student had pointed a gun at their child in a school parking lot.
The incident caused a “brief” shelter-in-place, according to Seattle Public Schools.
School staff was able to identify a possible suspect as well as “others involved in the incident.”
Police were unable to find the suspect at the time, and no weapon was found on campus.
KIRO7 asked Seattle Public Schools about the incident at Nathan Hale High along with the Garfield High situation that happened on Wednesday.
A spokesperson sent the following statement:
Garfield High School
“There were also reports of gunfire in the Garfield neighborhood but NOT on a Seattle Public School campus. The Seattle Police Department (SPD) quickly responded to that incident. SPD is investigating and we do not know if SPS students were involved in the incident involving a gun off campus.”
Nathan Hale High School
“In an unrelated incident, the Nathan Hale administration received a report at approximately 12:30 p.m. of a student brandishing a gun in the student parking lot. As a precaution, the school was placed in a brief shelter-in-place, until Seattle Police Department could conduct a campus safety walk. The student was confirmed not be on campus nor in the building. No weapon was found. Regular schedules and activities resumed after about 30 minutes. Parents also were notified and updated by the principal.”
KIRO 7 also spoke with SPS Executive Director of Operations Marni Campbell, on what has been done in recent months to improve school safety.
She says Seattle Police have told the district they have seen an increase in overall violence throughout the city.
“But the bottom line is, there are some conflicts in our community and in our neighborhood,” Campbell said.
She also says they work with contracted specialists on how they can improve safety constantly.
There is also an app students can download and use to report any safety concerns.
“Where you can enter an anonymous tip if you see something that you think is unsafe or dangerous,” said Campbell.
She also heard parents’ and students’ concerns back in June at Garfield High during a private meeting between them, the district, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, and Police Chief Adrian Diaz.
The meeting was set as a response to a string of violent incidents both on and off campus.
She says the number one thing that was discussed was the need for mental and emotional support for students.
While she believes the approach, they are taking is handling most issues at hand, she believes the more students and parents communicate with them, the safer schools will be.
“I think every single time we have input, whether it’s a community meeting, whether it’s an incident or whether it’s kid grabbing me and talking to me, every single input hopefully feeds into our practices and makes them better,” said Campbell.