Paso Robles middle schoolers arrested after bringing knife, toy gun and fake grenade to campus

Three Paso Robles middle school students were arrested Friday afternoon after bringing a toy gun, pocketknife and fake hand grenade to campus, police say.

According to a Paso Robles Police Department news release, staff at Daniel E. Lewis Middle School received information from a student that several other students may have brought a toy “airsoft” gun and knife onto school grounds.

An airsoft gun is a plastic toy gun that shoots a hard plastic projectile, according to the release. It can often look like a real hangun.

Staff confronted one of the students, and that student admitted to bringing the items onto school grounds, according to the release. Police say two other students helped the first hide the items from staff.

Those items included a clear plastic airsoft pistol, a pocketknife, a replica hand grenade and an empty vest carrier for ballistic panels, according to the release.

Police say the students did not make any threats to harm or intend to scare anyone at the school; instead they seemed to have planned to play with the airsoft gun after school “but made a poor decision to bring the items to school with them.”

Because the Paso Robles Police Department has a zero-tolerance policy for anyone who brings any type of weapon onto a school campus, all three students were placed under arrest for misdemeanor possession of a knife on school grounds and misdemeanor possession of a replica hand grenade.

The children — who police said are all 13 years old — were later turned over to their parents, and charges will be filed with San Luis Obispo County Juvenile Probation, according to the release.

This is an ongoing investigation, and the Paso Robles Police Department requests those with information to call the department at 805-237-6464.

This was the second police incident at the Paso Robles middle school Friday; two 14-year-old students were also arrested that same day after allegedly setting several fires and painting graffiti around campus.

Kaytlyn Leslie

The Tribune

805-781-7928 (voicemails only)

Kaytlyn Leslie writes about business and development for The San Luis Obispo Tribune. Hailing from Nipomo, she also covers city governments and happenings in San Luis Obispo. She joined The Tribune in 2013 after graduating from Cal Poly with her journalism degree.