Dover Teen Arrested for Bringing Gun to School

The Dover Police Department has arrested a 15-year-old from Clayton on gun charges, following an investigation that began Tuesday night. An individual informed a Capital School District staff member that the 15-year-old male student had brought a firearm to Dover High School the day prior. High School Staff and the School Resource Officer immediately began investigating this incident. On Wednesday morning, High School Staff and the School Resource Officer immediately took the 15-year-old in custody without incident when he arrived at school. The 15-year-old was not in possession of a firearm when taken into custody but substantial evidence existed that the original report was indeed accurate. The Dover Police Department’s Drugs, Vice and Organized Crime Unit assisted with this investigation, and as a result, two handguns associated with the reported incident were recovered from the residence of the 15-year-old. The teen is now at Stevenson House Youth Detention Facility on an over $36,000 secured bail and faces several firearm-related charges. 

Additional Information from Dover Police:

The 15-year-old was committed to Stevenson House Youth Detention Facility on $36,001 secured bail on the following charges:
-Possession of a Firearm by a Person Prohibited (2x)
-Possession of a Deadly Weapon in a Safe School Zone (2x)
-Possession of a Large Capacity Magazine
-Carrying a Concealed Deadly Weapon (2x)

The 15-year-old male is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Dr. Victoir Cahoon, Superintendent of the Capital School District provided the following statement regarding this incident:
“Yesterday’s incident underscores the importance of our long-standing partnership with the Dover Police Department and the impact of our School Resource Officers. We remain firmly committed to the safety of every student in our district and will continue working closely with Dover Police to ensure our schools remain secure learning environments.”

Chief Johnson echoed the words of Dr. Cahoon and provided an additional observation:

“We often hear the words ‘see something, say something’ when we discuss ways to prevent tragedies from occurring.  This incident at the school is not the norm, and is certainly concerning to educators and parents, but can also be used as an example of effective prevention/intervention when someone actually says something after seeing something.  Police Officers and Professional Educators need everyone’s help with our safety priorities in the community and in the classroom.  A very big thank you goes out to everyone who stepped up in a timely fashion to help prevent a potentially harmful outcome.”