5-Year-Old Caught With Loaded Gun at St. Louis County School

There have been no injuries reported related to the incident

Feb 17, 2023 at 3:18 pm

Missouri Republicans decided against banning minors from carrying guns in public just last week.

A child brought a loaded gun to Principia Lower School (13201 Clayton Road; Town and Country) today.

The gun was found by a teacher at around 8:45 a.m. The teacher was “assisting a 5-year-old student into an empty classroom, then discovered the gun inside the child’s tote bag,” according to Fox2Now.

The Town and Country Police Department is investigating the incident, and they say it was an “inadvertent incident with no intention on the part of the student.” There have been no injuries reported related to the situation.

Where and how the kid got access to the gun will be the next big question in the minds of the public, no doubt.

Hartmann: Missouri Gets Famous for 'Toddlers' Right to Carry': Republicans' gun bill morphs from attack on Kim Gardner to national punchline

This incident comes five weeks after a teacher in Virginia was shot by a six-year-old, who had also brought a gun to school.

Just last week, Missouri Republicans decided against banning minors from carrying guns in public.

Riverfront Times columnist and founder Ray Hartmann wrote about this just days ago.

Hartmann:

“If police stop a kid with a firearm, even if the kid is in their early teens or younger, there's no such thing as taking away that weapon as unauthorized. Any child has free rein to roam the streets packing heat, for real.

So, Representative Donna Baringer, D-St. Louis, proposed a modest amendment that would have banned minors from carrying certain firearms on public property without the presence of an adult. The Republicans pulverized it with a vote of 104-39.”

We’ll keep you updated on this story as it develops.