What happens to students caught bringing guns to Mecklenburg County schools?
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools just closed the school year with the dubious distinction of setting a record for the most guns recovered on campuses in a single school year.
Authorities found 30 firearms on CMS campuses during the 2021-2022 school year, up from a previous high of 22 in 2018-2019. Most of those weapons were recovered in the first half of the year, causing a swift backlash.
The Charlotte Observer last week reported that CMS’ gun problem is nothing new. Between 2010 and 2021, Mecklenburg County schools reported 323 firearm complaints filed against Mecklenburg County students younger than 18, by far the most of any North Carolina county in that span.
But what happens to the kids who commit gun offenses on school campuses?
The school district and police have declined to describe this in detail. But state data gives some clues. It shows that nearly one-third of school-based firearm complaints don’t go to court.
Data obtained by The Observer from the Department of Public Safety show that 68% of these complaints ended up in juvenile court. Another 16% of cases were dismissed, while 16% of cases were diverted, typically meaning the kid was required to complete an action plan or community service instead of going to court.
State officials said it’s possible that lower-level complaints against a student could be dismissed while more serious complaints against the same student could go to court.
Here’s how it works, according to William Lassiter, deputy secretary for juvenile justice at the state’s Department of Public Safety. When a firearm offense – or any other criminal offense – occurs on campus, the school’s resource officer or another police officer files a juvenile complaint to the state.
A student is generally removed from the school population, then the state determines how to proceed, Lassiter said. If it’s a serious offense, state officials have to determine: Does that person present a risk of re-offending? What was the nature of the offense?
“If the kid brought the gun to school and had it in a locker, that would be looked at differently than if they used that weapon to steal something,” he said. “There would be a violent intent.”
“We look at previous history, the nature of the crime, we look at the supervision level that’s at home. Are they in a gang? Are they not doing well in school?” Lassiter added.
If the student is determined to be a danger, they are held in state custody until they can go before a judge, Lassiter said. If not, they are released to a parent or guardian. Regulations require that if a child is held in custody they have to see a judge within three days to determine whether or not they can continue to be held, Lassiter said.
The Division of Juvenile Justice also must determine if cases will go to court. The more serious cases almost always do – 68% of cases go to court – but for less severe offenses the state has other options. Sixteen percent of school-based firearm cases were diverted, data from the state show.
Diversion can include many things, Lassiter said, but it generally involves connecting a kid with resources in their community in lieu of going to court. A student and a parent enter into an agreement and, if the conditions are met, they do not have to appear in court, said Diana Kees, deputy director of research at Juvenile Justice. If those conditions aren’t met, the child may have to go to court. Kees said the diversion plans last no longer than six months.
“We can’t just pretend like removing a kid from the environment removes the problem,” Lassiter said. “We have to seek long term resources for that kid.”
Another 16% of Mecklenburg County cases were closed without going to court or without a diversion plan, the data show, though it’s not clear why so many cases were dismissed. To protect the identities of minors, juvenile cases aren’t made public.
Once a case has been referred to Juvenile Justice, CMS becomes less involved in the outcomes. The Mecklenburg County Distict Attorney’s Office does not get involved in misdemeanor juvenile justice cases, though it does make recommendations to the state about how a case should be handled in felony cases, said Meghan McDonald, spokeswoman for the DA.
School district officials did not answer Observer questions about whether they feel the state is handling these cases effectively. CMS officials also haven’t answered questions about what steps the district took before this year on guns or even to confirm if the state’s data on guns matched its own.
On a per-student basis, Mecklenburg County schools were in the state’s top 10 of firearm offenses between 2010 and 2021, joined by only much smaller school districts, according to the state. After 23 guns were found in the first half of this school year, CMS ramped up up efforts to prevent guns from being carried on school grounds, adding body scanners and launching an anonymous reporting app. Seven guns were found in CMS schools in the second half of the school year.
Youth violence experts say that it’s important for school districts and state officials to work with people and organizations in the community to get the best results for such kids.
“You want to look at some of the outcomes like suspensions,” said Paul Smokowski, a violence-prevention researcher and founder of the North Carolina Youth Violence Prevention Center. “A suspension is a punitive discipline and it shows the level of problems that a school might be having. If they have more troubles they have to deal with, they often get more punitive.”
Smokowski said he’s seen decrease in problems when school districts and Juvenile Justice focus on “fostering community, fostering good connections with students and positive behavior.”
The Observer is eager to speak with students, families and school employees about their experiences when firearms were seized on school campuses. If you have something you want to share, email pguion@charlotteobserver.com
This story was originally published June 16, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
