Leechburg High School student, 13, arrested for having gun at school

A 13-year-old Leechburg Area student was arrested Thursday afternoon for allegedly taking a loaded pistol to school.

No one was injured, and police are investigating whether the boy threatened another student.

“Basically, there were rumors that he had a gun and he was called to the office,” said Leechburg Area Acting Superintendent Frank Prazenica. “The police were called and found him in possession of a weapon, then removed him from the school campus.”

Police Chief Mike Diebold said the boy was waiting in the principal's office with the staff about 1:40 p.m. when police first saw him.

“School officials wanted to wait for his mother to arrive before he was searched,” Diebold said. “Our officers saw that as a risk and searched him as a safety issue.

“A loaded .45-caliber pistol, with one round in the chamber, was in his waistband,” the chief said.

The district sent out an electronic message to parents advising them of the incident.

“We wanted the parents to know that the kids were not in any danger,” Prazenica said.

When asked whether there was any threat made verbally or on social media, Prazenica said he was not sure.

“Let's just say there was no pulling of a gun or anything,” he replied.

Diebold said the boy is being charged as a juvenile.

He is accused of stealing the Rock Island Armory pistol from a relative who, police say, had it under lock and key.

Among the charges the boy is facing are: having a weapon on school property, burglary, theft, receiving stolen property and having a concealed handgun and related charges.

Police department ‘inundated' with calls

But Diebold said the Leechburg Police Department was “inundated with phone calls concerning the safety of the students, why the school was not on lockdown and questioning the handling of the suspect until the time this department became involved.”

Leechburg Mayor Shawn Lerch posted a Facebook comment saying that he had contacted Prazenica and an unnamed school director “and strongly suggested changes to protect our children and teaching staff.”

Prazenica said the district does not use metal detectors to scan students as they enter the school.

Asked whether the incident might result in changes to the school district's security measures, he said, “The district can always review that.”

Prazenica said Roger Kaufman, a retired state trooper who is the district's in-school resource officer, was “very involved, very instrumental in getting the police involved immediately.”

In his Facebook post, Lerch praised the school district for employing Kaufman and added: “Roger along with Leechburg police did a tremendous job of diffusing a very serious situation.”

But Diebold said, “The Leechburg school board has formed its own internal police department. The Leechburg Borough Police Department does not oversee the school police.

“It is the responsibility of the Leechburg (Area) School Board to establish the policy and procedures of its police department; therefore, any and all questions about those policies or the lack thereof should be referred to the Leechburg (Area) School Board.”

“That is the first time I ever remember that happening,” said Prazenica, who has been a superintendent or acting superintendent at several school districts. “When I look back at my career, that doesn't happen too often.”

Chuck Biedka and Tom Yerace are Tribune-Review staff writers. Reach Biedka at 724-226-4711 or cbiedka@tribweb.com. Yerace can be reached at 724-226-4675 or tyerace@tribweb.com.