Gun-trained teacher accidentally discharges firearm in Calif. classroom, injuring student

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A teacher who is also a reserve police officer trained in firearm use accidentally discharged a gun yesterday at Seaside High School in Monterey County, California. The incident happened  during a class devoted to public safety. A male student was reported to have sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

The weapon was pointed at the ceiling at the time of discharge and debris fell from the ceiling. One of the male students was struck in the neck by some of debris that fell. The student’s father, Fermin Gonzales, told KSBW 8 that it was his understanding that fragments from the bullet ricocheted off the ceiling and lodged in the boy’s neck. The father also said the teacher told the class before pointing the gun at the ceiling that he was doing so to make sure his gun wasn’t loaded. He feel that is something that the teacher could have determined visually. The father learned of the incident when his son came home from school with blood on his shirt and his neck injured. He was treated at the local hospital.

The teacher has been placed on administrative leave while an investigation takes place, according to the school.