No staff nearby when student brought gun through metal detector, trustee says
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Frustrated parents meet on Wilmer Hutchins HS shooting
We now know the name of the 17-year-old accused of shooting his classmate at Wilmer Hutchins High School in Dallas. Meanwhile, students and parents voiced their safety concerns at a community meeting Tuesday night.
DALLAS – A Wilmer-Hutchins High School student charged with shooting a fellow student allegedly got the gun on campus because there wasn’t anyone watching him go through the metal detector.
Police say Ja’kerian Rhodes-Ewing, 17, shot the student in the leg with a Pink Lady handgun on April 12.
Ja’kerian Rhodes-Ewing (Dallas PD)
Dallas ISD Trustee Maxie Johnson told FOX 4 that Rhodes-Ewing brought the gun through the metal detector at an entrance near the Wilmer-Hutchins gym.
The metal detector was working at the time, but no staff member was nearby to check the student’s bag.
“The metal detectors worked. It was a failure from staff that did not follow the protocol in place,” said Johnson.
The district released a statement on Friday saying an investigation revealed the handgun was brought into the school during the late entry process during which “several safety protocols were not strictly followed.”
Dallas ISD says they have made changes district-wide as a result.
Staff will be retrained on backpack searchs, wands and metal detectors. They will also be reworking schedules so more staff is available to monitor students on campus.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Wilmer-Hutchins holds assembly on school safety
One week after a student shot another student at Wilmer-Hutchins High School in southeast Dallas, students held an assembly on school safety.
“Schools should always be safe havens, and we are proud of our students and team members who have stepped up to be part of the solution. It takes all of us working together to eliminate what has become all too common,” said DISD in a statement.
Rhodes-Ewing is charged with assault with a deadly weapon and the unlawful carrying of a weapon into a prohibited place.
It is still unclear how he got the gun in the first place.