Centerville teens admit to school gun crimes

Kettering police await word in middle school case.

Credit: FILE

Credit: FILE

Two Centerville High School students facing felonies after arrests involving a gun incident on campus have admitted to the crimes, court records show.

Meanwhile, Kettering police seeking a felony charge in a gun threat at a middle school said Wednesday no filing has occurred in the case involving a 13-year-old.

The Centerville admissions came from a 15-year-old female charged with making a terroristic threat and a 16-year-old male facing one count of conveyance of a deadly weapon in a school safety zone, according to court documents.

Both students involved in the Dec. 3 incident have had electronic home monitoring previously ordered by Montgomery County Juvenile Court Judge Anthony Capizzi terminated and are “delinquent…as alleged in the complaint,” records state.

Both teens appeared in court Dec. 23 are are set to return Jan. 18, according to records. Attempts to reach Centerville City Schools officials Wednesday were not successful.

Police said the arrests came after an unloaded rifle was found in a vehicle and a photo of the weapon was posted on Snapchat, along with a threat.

The incident happened after a Nov. 30 deadly shooting at a Michigan school.

Centerville police said arrests were made within 20 minutes and “there was never any imminent threat to the staff and students of CHS,” according to a Dec. 4 letter Superintendent Tom Henderson sent to families.

The Kettering case involves an eighth-grader who police records show told classmates he was “going to be the future shooter” at Van Buren Middle School.

The Kettering Police Department has asked the prosecutor’s office to consider a felony inducing panic charge against the student, KPD spokesman Officer Tyler Johnson said in an email.

The Van Buren student did not have a weapon but was searching gun websites during an afternoon study hall and talking about the weapons, Johnson has said.

The KPD’s report was initially considered for “an unofficial diversionary handling of the case,” but has been referred to the county prosecutor’s office, said Spokesman Greg Flannagan. The report was received Wednesday, he said.

The Kettering incident happened a day before what was posted on TikTok as “National Shoot Up your School Day,” which threatened shootings, bomb threats and other violent acts.

Police said the teen was suspended. Kettering City Schools “can’t comment on the discipline of a specific student” but “this situation is being handled according to board policy,” district spokeswoman Kari Basson said in an email.

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