A mother at Oakman Middle School said her child was one of three threatened when another student came to school with a gun. Two students were arrested, but Erin Harbin said she was not notified.
The Walker County Sheriff's Office confirmed two students were arrested Monday following the incident.
However, Harbin said her daughter was directly threatened, and she is concerned because the school was not put on lockdown and school officials did not call her. After consulting with an attorney, she said realized the school system followed what she considers to be outdated protocol.
"Protocol has got to change," Harbin said. "From what we were told, it's a very outdated protocol. Protocol has got to change. Us as parents have got to reach out to the proper people, make noise on this situation and get these protocols changed because in our eyes, this situation was active. A child actively had a gun at school. A child actively threatened, not only my child, two other children and at the end of the day, he threatened the entire Oakman Middle School because if he would've shot once, he probably wouldn't have stopped."
The mom said her daughter will likely struggle with what she has been through for quite some time. She said she wants to handle the situation correctly but is also calling other parents to speak out before something worse happens.
"I will continue to do what I have to do to make sure that things change within every school system with how things like this are handled," said Harbin.
Harbin said she is thankful for teachers and the immediate response to the firearm found on campus because no one was hurt.
Walker County Schools Superintendent Dr. Dennis Willingham released a statement saying the situation was handled within just a few minutes.
"Within a few minutes of being notified, the principal and SRO confiscated the backpack and handled the situation appropriately," he said. "Because proper protocol was followed, a terrible situation was turned into a best case scenario for everyone. I want to commend the Oakman administrators and Sheriff's Department for ensuring that everyone was safe."
Authorities did not identify the students arrested due to their age.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email erica.thomas@1819news.com.
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