DeKalb teacher arrested after colleague finds loaded gun in elementary school restroom

[groundloop]

Source: WSB TV

A beloved DeKalb County elementary school teacher is facing charges after police say he brought a loaded gun into a school and left it in a restroom.

Sheldon Strickland, a fifth-grade teacher at Kingsley Elementary School in Dunwoody, was arrested and charged with one count of carrying weapons within a school zone, jail records confirmed.

As of 5 p.m. Friday, it was unclear if he had hired an attorney.

The alleged incident took place Thursday. Investigators say another teacher found the loaded gun inside a faculty restroom and reported it to administrators who wasted no time placing the entire school on lockdown.

Read more: https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/dekalb-county/dekalb-teacher-arrested-after-colleague-finds-loaded-gun-elementary-school-restroom/Q6342S63KJAOXLVR5Q23B3VUBQ/

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I have no doubt that Georgia gun nutz will waste no time in defending this teacher since the solution, of course, is more gunz.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. I have a hard time understanding this.

Okay, you need to know I'm as rabid an anti-gun person as exists. I'm in favor of confiscating all guns. I've never owned one. Never will.

But I do have enough imagination to be hornswoggled at the idea that someone who carries a loaded gun could leave it into a school restroom. WTF? How can you not notice you left a gun behind? Are gun owners that oblivious?

[groundloop]

3. Mistakes happen, and mistakes involving guns get people killed.

OK, everyone raise their hand who's ever misplaced their wallet or keys. Same thing, you get in a hurry and forget that you left your wallet/phone/keys/purse/loaded gun sitting somewhere. With a wallet/phone/keys/purse it's an inconvenience and maybe a little embarrassment, with a gun it's a potential death. That's yet another reason guns need to be better regulated.

[Wonder Why]

16. Unlike those other things which are easy to forget because they add minimal

weight, the gun is heavy and bulky enough that a reasonable person should notice it's not there. So the only conclusion IMHO is that the teacher is not a reasonable person so should be banned from carrying a gun ever again.

[HeartachesNhangovers]

5. Imagine you have a handgun, which probably weighs at least 1 pound, in a holster

on your belt. If you undo your belt and sit down, the weight of the gun will drag the holster and gun onto the floor. If you're in a stall, the gun might be visible from outside the stall since it's on the ground. You can try to hold the holster up in one hand, but that won't work, for obvious reasons. Most people in this situation - public bathroom, stalls open at the bottom, gun-prohibited area - will remove the holster, or un-holster the gun - and put the gun on top of the paper dispenser. Most people will remember to put the holster back on before leaving, but some will leave the gun on the toilet dispenser for the next person to find.

Note: This has never happened to me.

[lostnfound]

9. Clearly there needs to be a law..requiring taxpayers to fund lockboxes in every bathroom stall..

It’s a small price to pay for free-dum. We flesh and blood humans gotta protect the NRA don’t we? No price too great .l.

[Kaleva]

13. I have a vertical shoulder holster

[Chainfire]

6. It probably fell out of his pants when they were around his ankles.

Besides being a criminal he was also a fool.

[csziggy]

20. I don't think this is the first time something like this has happened either

Nope:

Parkland, Florida teacher left loaded gun in public restroom

April 12, 2018

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A chemistry teacher at the Florida school where 17 people were shot to death has been arrested. Authorities say he left a loaded gun in a public restroom, where a drunk homeless man picked it up and fired it.

No one was injured, but the teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is now charged with failing to safely store his weapon.

A Broward Sheriff’s report says 43-year-old Sean Simpson, who carries a concealed weapons permit, left his Glock 9 mm in a restroom at the Deerfield Beach Pier on Sunday. He told deputies he was returning to get it when he heard a gunshot, and found the man holding the pistol.

Records show the teacher posted a $250 bond. It’s not known whether he has a lawyer.
https://apnews.com/article/2e3df257102a4950a145392a17a794bf

OK, that was not in a school but here we go:

Every Incident of Mishandled Guns in Schools
Kelly Drane
Last Updated April 7, 2023

Armed adults frequently mishandle their guns in schools. Keeping kids safe means keeping guns off K-12 campuses.

Our comprehensive analysis finds there have been nearly 100 publicly reported incidents of mishandled guns at schools in the last five years, including:

A teacher’s loaded gun falling from his waistband during a cartwheel.
A student grabbing an officer’s gun while the officer attempted to subdue the student.
A teacher unintentionally firing a gun in class during a safety demonstration.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Guns Left Accessible to Children
Catherine Cook School | Chicago, Illinois

March 6, 2020—An off-duty police officer serving as a school security guard left a gun in a school bathroom where it was discovered by three young students. No shots fired. [Source]

Ingram Middle School | Ingram, Texas

January 16, 2020—A school resource officer left a firearm unintended in the bathroom, where it was found by a student. No shots fired. [ Source ]

Pleasant Grove Independent School District | Texarkana, Texas

December 5, 2019 — A school district employee’s firearm fell out of its holster onto a school bus seat. The firearm was later found by a student. No shots fired. [ Source ]

And many, many more: https://giffords.org/lawcenter/report/every-incident-of-mishandled-guns-in-schools/

That article also includes:
Guns Discharged Unintentionally
Guns Mishandled During Discipline
Guns Used in Times of Personal Stress or Conflict
Other Incidents of Guns Brought onto Campus

[LudwigPastorius]

2. What the shit?

[SledDriver]

4. Just another "responsible" gun owner

[slightlv]

7. I'm with the person who said they're rabid anti-gun...

I am, too. I, however, have handled them, being ex-Air Force. Also, raised as a child with the NRA (when they were about gun safety). I do not now, nor do I anticipate having one in the house. Especially as my husband and I both age. Egads, we nearly lost all our 1099's today on the way to get our taxes done!

However, I'm coming at this story from a different angle. I don't understand charging the guy. Aren't all these people insisting that teachers be armed???? Okay, so he left in the bathroom. Bad on him. Really, really, really bad. But not because he brought a gun into a "no gun zone"... as I said... isn't that what teachers are suppose to do these days? I'm really confused.

[Tumbulu]

8. I'm with you

That’s what I thought they were all demanding, that teachers be armed.

So why this reaction?

[Phoenix61]

10. The law hasn't changed to accommodate their wants, yet. nt

[mwb970]

11. "Beloved" but stupid.

[marble falls]

12. Beloved? Maybe. Stupid, definitely. Should be held? Yes ...

... he may not be criminal, but he may well be criminally negligent.

[Ilsa]

14. Thank goodness it was in a faculty restroom.

Leaving it in a student restroom could have resulted in horrible tragedy.

So the teacher was arrested, but gun nutz want teachers carrying? This was just one teacher who lost control of his weapon.

[70sEraVet]

15. The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun, is a good guy with a .....

Wait a moment. Must have left it in the bathroom.

[NH Ethylene]

17. I know I've seen this same thing in the news before.

This is not the first time this has happened.

[csziggy]

21. See my post above

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143060472#post20

[NH Ethylene]

22. That's quite a list! n/t

[Bayard]

18. Just trying to be prepared for the next mass killer?

Rethuglicans will love him.

[Nelliedog]

19. Sounds like a Rambo

who thought he was arming himself to confront any potential shooter that came into the school. He laid the gun somewhere or it slid off his person as he was using the facilities. My guess, anyway.