A Louisiana gym teacher, Robert Mitcham, was arrested after allegedly threatening his third-grade students, warning them that some "would not survive" if he brought a gun to school. The incident occurred at Downsville Community Charter School in Union Parish on September 10, leading to his arrest two days later on charges of terrorizing.
According to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office, Mitcham, 70, reportedly told the class he had bullets for his gun and that he would bring it to school to shoot the students. He allegedly stated, "there were too many of y'all to get rid of," adding that he only had six bullets and some of the children would survive.
Following the event, Mitcham told officers he felt overwhelmed and just wanted the kids to calm down. He emphasized that he didn't mean to put them in danger. However, the school and law police expressed alarm over his remarks right away.
While the issue is being investigated, Mitcham is not allowed to return to the school and is being detained under a $15,000 bail. The importance of the issue was underscored by the sheriff's office, which also reminded parents to report any suspicious or worrisome conduct to authorities.
Dusty Gates, the sheriff for Union Parish, emphasized the value of deploying school resource officers to handle safety issues. Two policemen are present on campus every day at Downsville Community Charter School to make sure that both staff and children are protected.
Downsville principal Tony Cain had doubts on the incident's nature, notwithstanding the seriousness of the charges. He said that the first-hand information provided by pupils who were present during the incident did not match the narratives posted on social media and by parents. Cain refrained from providing any more commentary, although he did express his faith in the pupils' honesty and correctness.