Security Guard Thwarts Student’s Plan To Carry Out A Mass Shooting

This security guard saved lives, and he didn’t even have to draw a weapon.

According to Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell, a security guard at El Camino High overheard a student talking about his plans to carry out a mass shooting, and he reported it. He potentially saved dozens of lives. This cannot be stressed enough.

If you see something, SAY something.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell said at a news conference that a security guard at El Camino High in Whittier, east of Los Angeles, overheard the 17-year-old student on Friday threaten to open fire in a matter of weeks.

“Parents, this should be a wakeup call; please talk to your kids,” McDonnell said. “We owe students, parents and teachers our gratitude for providing these leads.”

The sheriff said the weapons found at the teen’s home included two AR-15 rifles and 90 high-capacity magazines.

McDonnell called the school security officer, Marino Chavez, an “unsung hero” for alerting authorities.

The kid tried to say that he was joking, but here’s the thing. It doesn’t matter. You don’t say stuff like that– ESPECIALLY not in this climate.

The security guard said the teen made the comments during a lunch break. I guess he had headphones out during class (which is against the rules). He was busted and got all mad about it.

The student, who has not been identified because he is a minor, was arrested on charges of making criminal threats, according to McDonnell.

Robert Jacobsen, the general counsel for the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, told the Whittier Daily News there are usually three safety officers at the school.

El Camino High is a small alternative school, with more than 200 students enrolled, he told the newspaper.

McDonnell said one of the AR-15s was registered to the 17-year-old’s older brother, while the other was not. The 28-year-old brother, whose name has not yet been released, was arrested on separate weapons charges, according to the sheriff.

This isn’t the first time this student has gotten into trouble for making a shady threat either.

The student has previously faced disciplinary action at the school, and was previously suspected of saying he wanted an administration dead. In that incident, the sheriff said the boy’s mother told police her son had issues but was not a threat.

The sheriff said in light of the recent mass shooting at a South Florida school that left 17 people dead, the actions by the officer show that “we all have to do this together” to stop potential violence in schools.

“This is something that could have gone down that path, but didn’t due to the work of the Norwalk school district,” McDonnell said, referring to the Florida shooting.

Thank goodness this was stopped before it was too late.

h/t Fox News