Four Hart high school students were arrested last week when it was reported that one of them may have been in possession of a gun while on campus.
The school was tipped off through their anonymous tip line and notified police. Officials with the school and Santa Clarita Sheriff Station deputies were able to identify the student who was allegedly in possession of a firearm and arrested him during classes. Additionally, three other students were arrested in connection with the crime.
The tip came through the school’s Student Care Line and shared that the suspect in question had posted a picture of themselves with a gun and a spray can. It’s believed that the photo was taken off-campus. As of the writing of this blog, the incident remains under investigation and the names of the students involved has not been released due to them being minors.
Penal Code 626.9 PC, California’s “Gun-Free School Zone Act,” prohibits someone from firing or possessing a gun in a school zone. A school zone is any area within 1,000 feet of a school.
It used to only prohibit the possession of firearms directly on school grounds, though it was amended in 1994 to its current state. According to the act, a gun is defined as any device designed to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel, a projectile by force of any explosion or another form of combustion. This definition covers traditional firearms as well as “zip guns” that fire real bullets. Interestingly, it doesn’t cover bb guns or pellet guns because they don’t use combustion to fire the projectiles.
The punishment for this crime varies. Typically, it involves a California state prison sentence of two to five years. If the gun is discharged in a school zone, it can be punished by a three, five, or seven-year prison sentence.
