The gun confiscated from Godby High was loaded; debate over the superintendent’s rivals

As new details emerge regarding student arrested with gun at Godby High School, Leon County superintendent candidates have different ideas on how to deal with the problem which plagued the neighborhood.

Shonda Knight, a spokeswoman for the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, told the Tallahassee Democrats on Friday that the student arrested was a 17-year-old female and that the gun she brought to campus was loaded.

The gun was discovered in her backpack after the school’s assistant principal responded to an anonymous tip that there were weapons on campus. The services did not disclose the type of weapon, whether it had been reported stolen, or the student’s intentions.

The teenager was disciplined under the student code of conduct and arrested on suspicion of illegal possession of a weapon on campus.

Tuesday’s incident marks the third loaded firearm confiscated on a Leon County school campus this year and the seventh arrest overall.

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Candidates for superintendents are wondering about school safety and metal detectors

During a recent candidate forum sponsored by Tallahassee DemocratsWFSU and the League of Women Voters, candidates running for superintendent, discussed tightening security measures on school grounds.

Incumbent Rocky Hanna and challenger Joe Burgess, principal of Chiles High School, agreed that school safety was important but differed on methods to address the problem.

Burgess stated unequivocally that all schools should have permanent metal detectors to ensure students are protected despite the logistical hurdles staff may encounter in implementing the solution.

“We need to install metal detectors. We need this level of security to ensure our parents and students who attend school every day are safe in our schools and campuses,” Burgess said.

Hanna was less emphatic and said a district security team went to Broward County in September to learn more about universal metal detectors. However, he highlighted the challenges of successfully getting students through the door.

Current practice is to use mobile metal detectors randomly. The district has AI weapon detection was also installed in their security cameras and introduces gun sniffing dog for random inspections.

“It’s a little more logistically problematic to see how exactly this would work, given that 2,000 children are rushing to school and they’re all going through metal detectors,” Hanna said at the forum. He also said it would impact upperclassmen who leave campus for lunch.

The district has launched a campaign to encourage students, teachers, parents and community members to report any suspicious activity to help in the collective effort for safer campuses.

How to submit an anonymous tip

Alaijah Brown covers children and families for Tallahassee Democrats. She can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter/X: @AlaijahBrown3.