Four Firearm Incidents on Four Campuses Since Thursday

Albuquerque –

Four separate gun-related incidents involving students have been reported at Albuquerque Public Schools since Thursday. The incidents resulted in multiple arrests and ongoing investigations.

Police have charged a 17-year-old with Unlawful Carrying of a Deadly Weapon onto School Premises. The incident happened in the morning on Monday, February 24, at Del Norte High School. The student is due in court tomorrow, Wednesday, February 26 for a detention hearing.

At Cleveland Middle School, on Friday, February 21, after a foot chase, another gun was purportedly recovered after a student tried to discard it from their person during a foot chase with police. As of Tuesday, February 25, the student involved has not been formally charged.

Also on Friday, there was a firearm found with or on a 16-year-old student at West Mesa High School. This 16-year-old has been charged with Unlawful Carrying of a Deadly Weapon on School Premises. The student was placed in a juvenile detention center in Albuquerque. There is a hearing today, Tuesday, February 25 to decide if he stays in custody or is released*.

In the afternoon on Thursday, February 20, a 15-year-old student at Valley High School was also found with a gun. On Monday, a Special Master from the Bernalillo County Juvenile Judicial System released the 15-year-old from custody.

The Bernalillo County District Attorney has zero tolerance for anyone who brings a gun onto school property. Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman said “Juvenile Crime is out of control, and we need changes to the Children’s Code NOW.” DA Sam Bregman has also been working to ensure that individuals caught with a firearm on campus remain in the Youth Services Center or the Metropolitan Detention Center (if 18 or older) until trial. But as we reported last week, the YSC has almost reached its capacity. As of this publication, the YSC population is 68, the facility’s maximum space allotment is 78.

DA Bregman has also been actively participating in conversations with juveniles to help them comprehend the long-term repercussions of crime, gun violence, juvenile crime, and its consequences. These conversations are held at various Albuquerque Public School-hosted events, since 2023 DA Bregman has visited 20 high schools and middle schools.

UPDATE:

*This hearing was initially reported as being scheduled for Wednesday. If we learn more about the hearing outcome, we will post it below.

Today, a hearing officer ruled the 16-year-old student from West Mesa will stay in custody for now, but did make him eligible to be released in the coming days with supervision

UPDATE 2:

APS sent an email regarding the four firearm incidents:

• On Feb. 20, a loaded handgun was confiscated from a student’s backpack at Valley High School. The freshman was taken into custody and charged with Unlawful Carrying of a Deadly Weapon onto School Premises.
• On Feb. 21, Cleveland Middle School received a report of a possible gun on campus. APS police were already on site when the report came in. When they went to secure the backpack and student, he ran off campus. Officers subsequently located a gun near the school. The investigation into that incident is still underway. No charges have yet been filed.
• On Feb. 21, a gun was found in a student’s vehicle on the West Mesa campus. The 16-year-old was charged with Unlawful Carrying of a Deadly Weapon onto School Premises.
• On Feb. 24, Del Norte High School received a report that a student was carrying a handgun on campus. When APS police and the school resource officer attempted to detain the 17-year-old student, he ran, exited the building and fled off campus. APS police pursued him across Montgomery Boulevard and into a nearby business parking lot, where he was apprehended. During a subsequent search of the area, police located the gun in a nearby bush. The student was charged with Unlawful Carrying of a Deadly Weapon onto School Premises

If you have a student in school and an incident involving a weapon is ever reported on campus, ABQRAW would like to know. We will maintain your anonymity if you contact us, as we do with all sources. If you receive a letter from your student’s school about the incident and can email it to us, please do so at info@abqraw.com. Again, we will respect your and your student’s right to remain anonymous.

THANK YOU VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL —
Today, Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman met with students at Valley High School to discuss gun violence. This is part of Albuquerque Public School’s Gun Violence Prevention Program and DA Bregman’s continued efforts to educate and… pic.twitter.com/5vHWNAhGTF

— Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman (@BerncoDa) November 14, 2024