Two Hillcrest High School students charged after gun found on campus
Two Hillcrest High School students have been charged in connection with bringing a gun and a loaded magazine to campus Wednesday morning.
Sgt. Josh Hastings, a spokesman for the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office, said deputies were called to Hillcrest High, 300 Patriot Parkway, around 10:45 a.m. Wednesday by faculty and school resource officers to investigate a report of a juvenile in possession of a firearm.
After an investigation, Hastings said two juvenile students were charged with illegal possession of a firearm and altering the serial number of a firearm.
"At the conclusion of our investigation, we determined two juveniles had actually been in possession of the same gun at different times on school property. As a result of that, they were both charged and turned over to (the Tuscaloosa County) Juvenile Detention Center," Hastings said.
Hastings said there was never a threat to the school and there was no lockdown put in place. The names of the students were not released because of their juvenile status.
Jeff Hinton, the principal at Hillcrest High, released a statement to parents and the community shortly after the incident.
"We want to provide you details about an incident that happened on campus this morning. We received information that a student was seen with a firearm at school this (Wednesday) morning. This information was reported by another individual, soon as that individual made the observation. Our school resource officer and administrators were able to quickly secure the student and locate the firearm. The firearm was not loaded, but the student did have a clip loaded with bullets in their possession. No one was injured in this situation," Hinton said.
"We extended the class period and held students in their classrooms, for the purpose of conducting a thorough investigation of the situation," the principal said.
"We are thankful to the individual who spoke up immediately when they saw a potential danger to our school. This is one of the most important and effective ways you can help keep our school safe. Because this is an active investigation, we are limited in some details that we can discuss at this time. However, please know that any student who brings a weapon to school faces serious consequences under our code of conduct. Please reach out to me directly with any questions or concerns," Hinton said.
Reach Jasmine Hollie at JHollie@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Two students charged after gun found at Hillcrest High School
