Livonia middle schoolers locked in classrooms after student gives gun to staffer

The principal of Livonia's Holmes Middle School sent a letter to parents Monday explaining that students were briefly locked in their classrooms when a student handed a gun he'd brought to school to a staff member.

Holmes Principal Roger Opsommer said in the letter that the school "had a brief hold in place for our students and staff while we attended to a serious situation with one of our students. A hold in place is part of our safety protocol that keeps students and staff in classrooms and hallways are cleared while the situation is being addressed.

"A student voluntarily went to see a support staff member and expressed concerns," Opsommer wrote. "The issue of concern was not related to threats toward students, staff or the school. During that meeting, the student turned over a weapon to the staff member; the weapon was a gun. Based upon initial investigation, it was not taken out or shown to anyone, including other students, prior to that time."

Opsommer said the gun was "immediately secured and turned over to our BlueLine security officer and (the Livonia Police Department) was contacted. The police responded to the school and are currently addressing the situation in concert with our LPS and Holmes administration as well as the student and parent."

An officer who answered the phone at Livonia Police Headquarters said Monday that nobody was available to answer questions about the incident.

Opsommer wrote that he "wanted to get this information out to you as soon as possible. If you or your child are in need of support, it will be made available. Additional school social workers will be on hand during the school day tomorrow and thereafter, if needed, as a resource for our students."

ghunter@detroitnews.com