Crime & Safety

Police: Archer HS Student Brought Gun to Saturday Track Meet

David Augustus Lee II, a student at Archer High School in Lawrenceville, was charged and arrested with possessing a weapon on school grounds at Parkview High School. No one was hurt.

An Archer High School student has been released from jail after being charged with having a handgun present during a school sporting event. 

David Augustus Lee II of Lawrenceville was arrested March 30 at Parkview High School in Lilburn, where he was attending the fourth annual Big Orange Relays track meet. A witness at Archer High alerted police to the possible presence of a weapon; Lee's arrest followed a search of his vehicle by school officials.

Gwinnett County school officials confirm the student is a sophomore at Archer High, and say in cases such as this, that students are out of school pending a disciplinary panel.

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"The panel then determines the consequence for the incident based on the facts of the case," said Sloan Roach, spokeswoman for Gwinnett County Public Schools.

Witness Notifies Police

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About 8:20 a.m., on March 30, a witness said he saw the student in question walk to the back of his vehicle at Archer High and retrieve what appeared to be a nickle-plated pistol, according to a Gwinnett County Police Department report. The witness had arrived to the school a little earlier to await await track coaches and a school bus transporting team members to the meet.

The witness said the student, later identified as Lee, then showed the weapon to a friend and "while holding the gun in his left hand, used his right hand to pull the slide back, as if chambering a round," a Gwinnett County police report stated.

The witness said Lee put the weapon back in the trunk, inside the floorboard compartment. At that time, the report states that the suspect and his friend went to the passenger side of the vehicle, where other athletes were gathered for departure to the track meet.

According to the report, the witness tried to call police once the busses arrived, but could not get cell phone reception. Contact eventually was made with the on-duty school resource officer, however.

Officers could not locate the suspect's vehicle at Archer High, so officials made their way to Parkview High, where the track meet was taking place. The vehicle was located at the school, in the lower parking lot near the stadium.

Police made contact with Parkview High's athletic director, Mark Whitley; an administrator from Peachtree Ridge High, Jon Weyher; and the boys track coach at Archer High, Brian Lane.

Lane pointed out the suspected student standing near the pole vault, and also confirmed that a friend of Lee's also suspected of being involved was present, as well.

Because an administrator must be present during such incidents, Weyher spoke to Lee's friend, who said  "that he did not see a gun, only (that) there was talk about guns," according to the police report.

Weyher then summoned Lee, and asked him about the possible presence of a gun on campus. The student told officials that he did not have a gun with him, but that "his mom owns a gun and (that) it's currently at their house," according to the police report.

The school official then escorted Lee to the vehicle he had been driving. The sudent unlocked the vehicle, and Weyher and Whitley began to search it. There, inside the rear cargo compartment where the spare tools are kept, the school officials located a weapon.

The handgun was a semi-automatic 9mm Bryco Arms Jennings Nine model. It matched the description given by the witness at Archer High earlier in the morning. Police found 11 rounds of ammunition inside the magazine.

Keeping Schools Safe

The witness in this case did what school district officials hope that every community member does -- be involved and be alert. Everyone is a part of keeping schools safe, said Roach, a GCPS spokeswoman.

"Students, teachers, parents, and community members play an integral role in keeping our schools and students safe," she said. "We encourage everyone to keep their eyes and ears open and to let us know if they have concerns."

Like other school districts, Gwinnett County Public Schools also must meet challenges of weapons on school grounds, drugs, and the like. According to state data, there were 155 felony weapons incidents (where students have been found to have violated school rules related to such crimes) at Gwinnett schools in 2012. 

Seven were at Archer High School, with most of those involving knives. Two were at Parkview High School.

In this case, no one was injured, the student's parents were contacted, and Lee placed under arrest. The student later told police that "he knew the gun was in the car, and it was his mother's for protection."

The police report states that each of his parents also said the gun was theirs.

The student was booked into Gwinnett County Detention Center about 2 p.m. on March 30 and charged with possessing a weapon on school grounds. His bond was set at $2,950. He was released about 10 p.m.

For future reference, GCPS officials said that the district has a confidential tipline that can be used to report suspicion of someone carrying a weapon, drugs, or alcohol on school property.

That number is 770-822-6513.


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