GRANDVIEW, Mo. — Grandview High School students walked out of class to make a statement Friday afternoon.

Those involved in the walkout organized it after police arrested a 16-year-old student who allegedly took a gun to the high school on April 20. The students said they should have been told about the gun but didn’t know until days later.

The school district sent families the following email Friday after learning of the walkout.

Dear Grandview C-4 high school families:

It was reported to administration this morning that a number of GHS students were planning a walkout during advisory time at 12:30 p.m. to protest gun violence in schools.  While we were not notified prior to this event, we took the needed precautions to ensure any students who participated were as safe as possible, including having extra Grandview Police Department officers present in the parking lots.  The students were allowed to be in the front of the school and returned to class for the last period of the school day.   The high school administrative staff worked with our students to show our support during this peaceful protest and made sure the students did so safely without any additional disruption to the school setting.  

As a school district, we respect our student’s rights to freedom of speech.  As always the safety of our students is a top priority and we are pleased that the students who participated did so within a safe and respectful environment.

Email sent to Grandview High School Families

Grandview School District said it worked with Grandview Police during the incident.

In a letter to families sent Tuesday, the district said no other students were around when the incident happened and there was no threat of imminent harm to any employee or student.

Some parents with students who attend the high school say they are upset they didn’t learn about the weapon at the high school until five days after police arrested the student.

The 16-year-old is charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful use of a firearm, and tampering. According to the court, the teenager modified a Glock 19 to convert the weapon into a fully automatic pistol.