A 17-year-old senior at Pearl-Cohn High School was taken into custody after a loaded handgun was found in his backpack, authorities said.
According to WKRN News 2, an Evolv weapon detection system alerted staff to the firearm in the teen's backpack, a detail the outlet attributed to the Metro Nashville Police Department. The technology is designed to flag metal objects consistent with weapons as students pass through school entrances, and in this case it worked as intended, catching the gun before the student got further into the school day.
How MNPS handles screening alerts
Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools says Evolv systems were installed at all district high schools at the end of the 2024-25 school year. When a system flags an item, staff conduct a brief secondary screening in a designated area, according to MNPS.
Police told the station that the student said the gun belonged to his father and that he had forgotten it was in his backpack. According to the same report, the teen faces charges of juvenile handgun possession and carrying a gun on school property.
A Pattern Emerging at One Nashville Campus
WKRN News 2 reported that police had announced four cases since classes began on August 11 in which teens were charged with bringing guns to Nashville high schools. Two of those cases were at Pearl-Cohn, according to the report.
The reported tally places half of those four announced cases at Pearl-Cohn; the outlet did not provide details about the other two incidents. The report also did not say whether the student's father could face charges.
The report included no statement from the student's family, Pearl-Cohn High School or Metro Nashville Public Schools.
