FAIRMOUNT HEIGHTS, Md. — A 17-year-old Fairmount Heights High School student is charged as an adult after reportedly being caught with a loaded, fully-automatic pistol and drugs on school property in Prince George’s County, according to Prince George's County Police.
The modified pistol can empty its entire magazine of ammunition in one pull of the trigger and functions as the equivalent of a miniature machine gun, according to weapons experts.
Such weapons are generally illegal to sell in the U.S. and can only be obtained under strict regulations by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF).
However, pistols can be illegally modified to make them into the fearsome weapon allegedly seized from the student at Fairmount Heights High School.
Prince George’s County Police report that school security officers recovered the gun. School resource officers reacted after being notified that the student had possession of illegal drugs, according to police.
During a search, they reportedly discovered both a loaded gun and drugs.
Prince George’s County Police said the gun had a machine modification which allows the gun to automatically shoot multiple rounds without having to pull the trigger repeatedly, as a machine gun would.
The student is being charged as an adult and faces numerous gun and drug related charges.
Fairmount High School is on a list for installation of gun detection technology but has not yet received the detector devices, according to Prince George's County Public Schools.
In July, after a 17-year-old summer school student was caught with a gun at Central High School, Prince George’s County School Superintendent Millard House II announced safety enhancements including the installation of metal detectors and a requirement for students to carry clear backpacks.
"These types of security enhancements are nationwide and they make sense and we are going to follow suit here to make sure we have the kind of safety we want to see," House said.
House stepped into the Prince George’s County leadership role in the middle of a county-wide school safety crisis. Earlier this month, a student was killed outside of DuVal High School while trying to de-escalate a fight. In May, three teenagers were indicted after attempting to kill another student on the school bus. In December 2022, a 16-year-old was shot at Suitland High School.
Fairmont Heights High School made headlines last May because a student brought ghost gun parts to the school.
Twelve guns were seized during the 2022-2023 school year, including summer school sessions, according to Prince George’s County Police.
Two guns have been recovered since the beginning of the 2023-2024 school year in August, police said.
“As always, we will continue to exercise every means possible to ensure safe learning environments for students and staff and we ask the community to join us in this collective effort,” said Meghan Gebreselassie, a school district spokesperson.
The next round of equipment installation is expected in October according to Gebreselassie.