The Flathead High School student who brought a loaded gun to school in January will be on probation for a year.
The 17-year-old male appeared at a dispositional hearing for sentencing on April 29 during which Judge Amy Eddy told the student he would have to remain on probation until he is 18 years old and write a letter of accountability to school officials.
The Beacon is withholding the defendant’s name because he is a minor.
According to Flathead High School Resource Officer Cory Clarke and court documents, a school employee noticed the student was skipping class on Jan. 29 and confronted him.
During the conversation, the employee noticed the student smelled of alcohol and he was taken to an administrator’s office. The student allegedly told school officials that he had been drinking and that there was a bottle of wine in his bag. When officials searched the bag, they also found the loaded revolver with five bullets.
During an interview with police, the student said he planned on selling the gun, but Clarke said other interviews suggested that the student was about to runaway from home and wanted the weapon as protection. He allegedly stole the gun from a family member.
Clarke said that he does not believe the student planned on harming anyone with the weapon.
The student was charged with six misdemeanors, including possession of a weapon in school, carrying a concealed weapon, criminal possession of drug paraphernalia, running away, theft and unlawful possession of an intoxicating substance. The concealed weapon charge was later dismissed. In March, the student admitted to the other violations at a change of plea hearing.
The teen is being sent back to Oregon to be with his mother.