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Principal responds to Facebook pic of teen holding gun inside Richmond school

Posted at 9:30 PM, May 09, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-10 13:57:37-04

RICHMOND, Va. -- A photo recently posted on Facebook that appears to show a teenager with a backpack pointing a gun while inside Huguenot High School in Richmond has prompted an investigation.

The picture, which was posted publicly on social media, caught parent David Pride off guard. Pride’s daughter said she attends school at Huguenot High School with the student in the photo. A spokesperson from Richmond Public Schools would not confirm whether the picture was taken inside of the school.

A photo posted on Facebook appears to show a teenager with a backpack pointing a gun inside of Huguenot High School.

A photo posted on Facebook appears to show a teenager with a backpack pointing a gun inside of Huguenot High School.

“Anybody could get hurt,” David Pride said after he saw the photo.

The picture was posted on a Facebook page belonging to “Trust Nun Taee.”

Shortly after we took a look at the photo, it was removed from Facebook.

Richmond Police and RPS are both investigating the photo.

On Tuesday, the school principal released a statement concerning the incident.

This is Principal Marks calling to inform you that Richmond Public Schools officials, Huguenot High School administration, and the Richmond Police Department have concluded an investigation of a reported incident of a school safety violation that occurred on Monday, May 9, 2016 at Huguenot High School. The preliminary findings of the investigation have determined that this was an isolated incident that poses no immediate threat to the school.  RPS has a zero tolerance weapons policy, so rest assured that appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. As always, the safety of our students is a top priority and we remain committed to upholding the protocols of the Student Code of Responsible Ethics. I encourage you to speak with your children about the expectations outlined in the SCORE handbook and remind them of the impacts of their behavior on social media. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any further questions or concerns.

“I can’t even believe somebody would post something like this,” Christina Dick, a social media expert, said.

Huguenot High school

Dick said the picture could be seen by anyone, not just friends.

The poster followed up with a post about getting 100 new friend requests since posting the photo.

“It seems like the purpose of this post was to get attention on social media,” Dick said.

CBS 6 legal analyst Todd Stone said if the person in the photo did bring a weapon on school property, he could be charged with a crime and the photo could be used to prosecute the case.

“The state could essentially prosecute him for the felony charge of bringing a firearm onto school property,” Stone said.

If that ends up being the case, Pride said Richmond Schools needs to step up school security.

“They need to tighten down on security I think,” Pride said.

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