Few disciplinary remedies available after LISD gun scare
By BRENDA SOMMER bsommer@leader-news.com

Louise ISD Superintendent Andy Peters isn't happy he has few options to deal with the two girls involved in a spat that led to Friday's campus-wide weapon scare.

"One of them asked if she could come to class today - it just makes no sense," Peters said Monday.

Two girls were arrested on campus Friday morning after students reported a possible weapon on one of the girls, who'd apparently been frightened by the other girl. The entire campus was locked down before El Campo Police Officer Cindy Howell found a pellet gun that looked like a real gun when she searched the first girl, who is 13 years old.

"For some reason, she felt the need to protect herself," Peters said only hours after the incident.

"We're keeping them out of school this week and we're making plans to put the girl with the gun in DAEP," Peters said Monday. Discipline Alternative Education Placement, or DAEP, is an alternative education program for students who are unable to attend regular school due to persistent misbehavior or who have committed certain felonies.

"Our lawyer said a pellet gun is not a firearm, so we can't expel her, but DAEP is a possibility," Peters said. "Pellet gun or not, the handbook says we can put her in DAEP. You have to, otherwise it sends the wrong message to everybody."

He said the 13-year-old girl who allegedly precipitated the incident, who was arrested Friday on an outstanding warrant for harassment, has "a whole bunch of problems."

"She's not in DAEP now, because she pretty well behaves in school, but she's got some court cases coming up," he said.

Peters said he's frustrated he doesn't have more control over what happens next to the two students.

"The Texas Education Code doesn't help me if it says you can bring a pellet gun that looks like a gun to school," he said. "What does that tell you? I know a lot of people in our community are very upset."

On the other hand, he plans to do everything in his powers to ensure the safety of his campus.

"I guarantee you they're going to be isolated as long as we can," he said. "There's 110 kids at that junior high school, and I need to send a message to them as well, that they are safe."

District administrators plan to meet with officials from the Wharton County Sheriff's Office within a few weeks to go over the district's reaction to the incident, which was contained rapidly.

"One thing we've found is we have a couple spots on the campus we don't have a PA system: the library, which is a self-contained building; the elementary gym; our computer lab and the boardroom," Peters said. "But overall, I think our response went real well."