UPDATED: Loaded firearm recovered on school bus

School buses leave a local school in Ocala in 2023. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette file photo]

UPDATED POST: A loaded firearm was recovered from a juvenile on a Marion County Public School bus headed for College Park Elementary on the morning of Sept. 8 after students alerted the bus driver, who pushed an emergency radio button to notify school officials and law enforcement, according to the Ocala Police Department.

OPD officers responded to the vicinity of  Southwest 27th Avenue and Southwest 14th Street, where they recovered the loaded .38 caliber revolver near the juvenile, who initially resisted officers but was then taken into custody, an OPD press release stated.

The were no injuries in the incident.

“Detectives determined the firearm had been taken without permission from a relative’s secured bedroom. The juvenile admitted to taking the weapon the day prior and bringing it onto the bus concealed in his clothing. He also admitted to showing the firearm to other students but stated he did not intend to harm anyone,” according to an OPD statement.

According to OPD, the student was arrested and transported to the Department of Juvenile Justice. He faces multiple charges, including possession of a firearm on school property, possession of a firearm by a minor, carrying a concealed firearm, armed burglary, grand theft of a firearm, disruption of a school function and resisting arrest without violence.

ORIGINAL POST: A firearm was recovered from a juvenile on a Marion County Public School bus headed for College Park Elementary on Monday morning (Sept. 8) after an alert bus driver pushed an emergency radio button to notify school officials and law enforcement, according to the Ocala Police Department.

OPD officers responded to the vicinity of Southwest 27th Avenue and Southwest 14th Street, where they recovered the firearm and took the juvenile into custody, according to an OPD Facebook post.

The post states there were no injuries in the incident.

“Detectives are working closely with school officials and the juvenile justice system to determine how the firearm was obtained and whether any threats were made or intended,” the post stated.

The OPD post did not clarify if the bus driver actually saw the firearm. OPD stated the case remains under active investigation and additional details may be available later.

Kevin Christian, MCPS director of public relations, stated in an email that school bus drivers are “trained to use their emergency radio button for emergency situations just like this morning’s. That communication goes to district leaders and first responders.”

Christian stated he could not comment further on today’s incident but added that the driver “pushed the emergency button based on her concern for her students and bus route” and that the Student Code of Conduct discusses discipline for weapons offenses.

The student code at marionschools.net, under the Zero Tolerance Policy, states that students who commit the “serious offense” of possessing a firearm at school, at a school event or on the school bus “will be expelled for a minimum of one calendar year and referred to mental health services and law enforcement.”

Dennis McFatten, executive director of Safety and Security for Marion County Public Schools, stated in an email that the swift reporting shows student and staff education is working.

“We want to thank our students and the bus driver for reporting this incident to the appropriate authorities without delay. Our continued efforts to educate students and staff on ‘See Something, Say Something’ is proof that it’s working. We want to remind parents to have conversations with their students about the dangers and consequences for bringing weapons to any School Board properties, including school buses, McFatten wrote.