Superintendent: Change Needed on Court Protocol Concerning Students Caught with Guns to School

Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer

Anderson School Dist. 5 Superintendent Tom Wilson wants to see a change in court protocol dealing with students bring a gun to school.

Wilson sent a letter to all teachers, employees and parents following Monday’s incident in which a T.L. Hanna student, 18-year-old Ronald Coleman, was arrest and charged with possession of a firearm on school property. 

Wilson said the student allegedly showed the gun to approximately 10 other students before one of them reported Coleman to the front office. 

“Thank God that one did come forward to report him,” Wilson said. The gun was discovered following a search after the report. 

“We are evaluating all our school sites, and have already made changes at several of them, already made changes in many of them to improve safety,” said Wilson. “We just need everyone’s help to assure our schools are safe. If you see something, say something.” 

He said the community should also be alert, like a Neighborhood Watch group, if they witness anything unusual on or near a school campus. 

He is also concerned that the student, who has now been expelled, was released on his own recognizance less than 20 hours after being arrested with a gun at school. No trial date has been set. 

Wilson said that while he’s not directly blaming the judge, at least an ankle bracelet could have been adjoined to the accused student until the trial. 

“It is a violent act to bring a gun to school,” Wilson added. “Someone does not have to be shot for that to be considered a violent act.” 

“Just let something happen and somebody shoot somebody in the school and everyone will go nuts,” said Wilson “Every day you wake up you wonder is this the day somebody is going to shoot up my school. We all worry about it.” 

He said some security measures have already been added, just a vestibules where a visitor must be vetted to be allowed in the school, are in place now. The district has added a clear bags at sporting events, and any kid not in at least nineth grade must to be accompanied to the game.

The district spends $2 million annually on School Resource Officers, and currently has moire th 1,200 cameras in the schools. 

“We solve a lot of problems with our camera systems, especially theft,” said Wilson.

The district created a new position, executive director of safety and security, and recently hired former Greenville law enforcement veteran Shannon Piller to fill the role.

“We’re doing what we can to make the schools as safe as possible,” said Wilson. 

Last year there were three reports of guns on school grounds in the district. One was a fifth-grade student, and the Department of Social Services was notified as part of the process of dealing with that case.

The second was a student whose father apparently accidentally put his gun in his daughter’s backpack. The student found it upon arriving at school and immediately reported to the office. She was not charged, but the father did face charges.

The last, according to Wilson, was the most troublesome. In May, a former student T.L. Hanna student showed up at the school with a 9mm handgun and two clips and tried to get in to see some teachers. He did not get past the front office, and was arrested and charged.  

“Certain guidelines need to change,” said Wilson. “I have been told the solicitor’s office is short-handed, and maybe that is part of the problem.” 

Wilson said there are no easy answers, including allowing teacher to bring guns to school, which he opposes. In casual conversations with other superintendents in the Upstate, the general consensus is the worry that too many busy teachers already lose grade books, and asking them to keep up with guns in a safe manner is adding another burden to their responsibilities. 

“We have created a culture of violence,” said Wilson. “And this past summer there was a lot of teenager gun violence in Anderson.”