Beaufort County middle school student tries to board school bus with BB gun in gym bag

Several Bluffton Middle School students told an administrator that a boy about to board a school bus during dismissal Tuesday afternoon had a gun in his backpack, according to a Bluffton Police Department report made available Wednesday.

The weapon turned out to be a BB gun, according to Beaufort County School District spokesman Jim Foster. Administration took the boy off of the bus and confiscated the weapon.

The responding police officer noted several loose "BB's" in the bottom of the boy's backpack.

In a police interview, the boy said he brought the gun to school with the intention of returning it to his friend after school.

"He didn't understand why he was in trouble, because he never threatened anyone with it or spoke about it while in school," the report said.

The officer told him that the "air soft pistol" is capable of firing plastic BB projectiles, making it a weapon, which is illegal to have on school property.

The matter is being referred to Beaufort County Family Court.

According to the district's Student Code of Conduct, possession of a prohibited weapon, which includes a BB gun, is the highest-level of offense and carries a punishment of up to a 10-day out-of-school suspension with a recommendation for expulsion or assignment to the district's alternative school, the Right Choices program.

Beaufort County School District has reported about a dozen potential threats in the wake of the Feb. 14 school shooting that killed 17 in Parkland, Fla.

This story was originally published March 21, 2018 at 12:37 PM with the headline "Beaufort County middle school student tries to board school bus with BB gun in gym bag."