Leechburg Area students caught with BB gun, no threat to school

Leechburg Area School District administrators called in local police after students were reported playing with a BB gun outside of school grounds, but close to David Leech Elementary School.

“We had some older students who were clowning around with a BB gun,” said district Superintendent David Keibler. “They were outside. They were not on school property, but were near the elementary school exit where the kids are dismissed from.”

Keibler said the students with the BB gun were older Leechburg Area students.

In an email sent to parents, Keibler said the students were reported by parents, and they would not be in school Friday as punishment. The weapon never entered any of the district’s buildings.

“There was zero threat to the students during the situation that happened yesterday,” Keibler said.

Keibler said the school contacted the Leechburg Police Department, and the issue was resolved quickly. The school did not need to go on lockdown.

Parents shared on social media that they weren’t given any information about the incident until late Thursday night.

“A notification would have come out much earlier had I thought there was a true threat to the school,” Keibler said. “If I ever feel that there is a threat to the students, they would not be arriving at school. They would be switched to a remote learning day.”

Keibler said he often has to be careful with the information that he releases because it could turn into student discipline, which is information that he is not allowed to release to the public without notifying the school board. In more serious cases, the district isn’t able to release information right away for fear of interfering with an investigation.

“We just can’t release information at will,” Keibler said.