DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Parents are now learning what worked to keep their kids safe at Druid Hills High School on Monday.
According to the DeKalb County School District, a student brought a weapon to campus in their backpack.
The school’s new conveyor belt machine alerted staff to the concern. Administrators searched the bag and secured the weapon before anyone was hurt.
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The principal sent parents a letter letting them know what happened.
The district would not reveal what type of weapon was discovered. However, in the interest of letting other districts see what worked, staff did agree to give Channel 2’s Courtney Francisco an up-close look at the machine that spotted it.
“It’s similar to what you would go through at the airport security,” said Monica Kupsco.
She’s gone through it at her child’s school in DeKalb County.
It’s a conveyor belt that scans each person’s bag as they enter the school building. It pairs with the walk-through detectors some districts use.
Channel 2 Action News checked with Gwinnett County Public Schools and Atlanta Public Schools.
Out of the top three largest districts in the state, DeKalb County is the only one using this extra layer of security.
Just like the walk-through scanners, the conveyer belt detects metal and highlights it in red on a computer screen.
However, the alarm will only sound when something shaped like a weapon passes through the machine.
So, staff are watching people walk inside, and another set of staff are looking at each person’s bag.
“It was slow in the beginning, but now it’s perfectly find,” said Kupsco.
Some critics have argued in the past that extra equipment can distract students. So, I asked the Organization of Dekal Educators union leader if that happened here.
“I have not heard that,” said Deborah Jones. “When they first started, it was a problem because they had people who did not know how to work it. So, now we have people who know how to work it in terms of the police.”
Parents said Monday’s discovery is proof that it is worth it.
“The fact is: horrible things do happen, and when a system like this can prove its worth and be instituted in the school system, why not have it?” said Kupsco.
The state does not track how many schools have weapon detectors.
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Channel 2 Action News has reached out to the Georgia Department of Education to obtain data related to the number of weapons found in each district. We are waiting to hear back.
Francisco obtained that data in 2025. It was based on the 2023-2024 school year.
The Gwinnett County system had the highest number of disciplinary actions involving weapons.
Administration disciplined students for carrying knives 191 times, and staff disciplined students for bringing guns to school five times.
Four of those gun-related punishments involved handguns. One involved a rifle. Staff disciplined students carrying other types of weapons to school 204 times.
Two disciplinary cases fell under the other firearm category.
Cobb County documented 145 disciplinary incidents involving knives, nine involving guns, 47 involving other weapons and two involving other firearms.
Fulton County had 144 discipline incidents involving weapons in the 2023-24 school year.
Staff disciplined students for carrying knives 84 times, handguns 10 times and other weapons 50 times.
The districts with no weapon-related disciplinary actions in the 2023-24 school year include: Baker County, Candler County, Clay County, Cook County, Echols County, Glascock County, Hancock County, Jenkins County, Johnson County, Meriwether County, Miller County, Stewart County, Talbot County, Taliaferro County, Terrell County, Webster County, Wheeler County, Wilcox County, Wilkinson County and Bremen City.
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