Nashville student charged with carrying loaded guns on campus

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - A 17-year-old student accused of carrying two loaded guns on East Nashville Magnet High School’s campus on Thursday is in custody, Metro Police said.

Police said a Metro Schools Security canine conducting a random search indicated there was something suspicious in the student’s backpack. School administrators searched the backpack and found two guns, one of which was reported stolen in Madison, Alabama, a Huntsville suburb.

The teen, who was in 11th grade, would not answer any questions about the guns, police said. He was taken to juvenile detention.

“It’s kind of upsetting, scary as well, because there’s no good results when guns are involved,” Jason Holley said. “Anything can happen even if it’s an accident.”

Holley has two children who attend East Nashville Magnet High School. He said he’d like to see more random searches like the one that turned up two guns Thursday.

“I’m just so sorry to hear that a lot of these kids today are resulting to violence and resulting to guns as an alternative to whatever they’re going through,” Holley said. “You’ve got to think about the consequences, as well that it can land you a long time in prison, maybe lifetime, and it can take your life.”

According to Metro Nashville Public Schools, these are the eighth and ninth guns brought to Metro Schools this year after 13 were found last school year.

Holley said he’ll be reinforcing a lesson of non-violence with his children, and it’s a lesson he wants all of Nashville to hear.

“We love to tell them that there’s other ways to do things in life,” Holley said. “Quit trying to impress people on social media, impress friends or peers because at the end of the day you may have the limelight then, but a week or two later you’re not even thought of, and if you are thought of, it’s in a worse way.”

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