MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – A 13-year-old girl was arrested Wednesday after she brought a loaded gun to a Miami Gardens middle school, Miami-Dade County Public Schools spokesman John Schuster said.
The girl brought a loaded handgun to Carol City Middle School, but school officials took it from her before classes began.
School district spokeswoman Daisy Gonzalez-Diego said the situation "could have been prevented if the weapon, which she brought from home, would have been properly secured."
The teen has been arrested on charges of attempted assault with a deadly weapon, carrying a concealed firearm, exhibiting a concealed firearm and improper exhibition of a weapon.
Gonzalez-Diego said an adult relative of the student, Kerry Watkins, 34, was arrested. He faces a charge of failing to secure a weapon.
"We are grateful to our courageous staff who took immediate, life-saving action," Gonzalez-Diego said. "We want to remind every parent and member of our community that storing firearms properly can potentially save lives. It is not only prudent, but a legal requirement."