Cranston police spent part of Thursday afternoon investigating a report that a juvenile had been seen with a firearm behind a building on Park Avenue, just outside Cranston High School East, around the time students were being dismissed for the day. Police said the call came in around 3 p.m. Thursday, and that the juvenile was neither a student at the high school nor physically present on school property when the report was made.
According to WJAR, officers responded to the area near the school after receiving word of a juvenile spotted with a gun behind a building along Park Avenue. The station reported that police confirmed the young person was not enrolled at Cranston High School East and had not been on the campus itself, even though the incident unfolded in close proximity to the school grounds.
Why Proximity to School Grounds Matters
That distinction carries real legal weight in Rhode Island. Under state law, possessing a firearm on school grounds is a serious offense, punishable by one to five years in prison, fines up to $5,000, and a mandatory suspension of a juvenile's driver's license for up to six months, according to FindLaw. The report also said the teen was off campus and was not a student at the school.
Separately, carrying a handgun or revolver in public without a valid Rhode Island license is a felony that carries a sentencing range of one to 10 years in prison, with a stated minimum of one year, as outlined by the Law Office of John L. Calcagni III. State law also generally bars anyone under 18 from possessing or using a firearm unless they hold a state permit and are supervised by an adult at an approved range or camp, according to the NRA-ILA.
Open Questions About How the Teen Got the Gun
It remains unclear whether an arrest was made, whether officers recovered a firearm, or how the juvenile may have obtained one. If an adult's gun turned out to be involved, Rhode Island's safe storage law imposes penalties on owners who leave firearms accessible to minors, with up to one year in prison for improper storage and up to five years if the weapon is used in a crime or causes injury, per the Giffords Law Center.
Cranston High School East sits at 899 Park Avenue and serves nearly 1,600 students in grades 9 through 12 under Principal Thomas Barbieri, according to the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The school's location along a busy stretch of Park Avenue puts it close to where Thursday's report originated.
A Neighborhood With a Recent History of Gunfire
Thursday's report was not the first time firearms have drawn police attention to this stretch of Cranston. On July 7, 2026, officers responded to a drive-by shooting nearby in which multiple rounds were fired into a vehicle near Park Avenue and Gansett Avenue, according to the Cranston Police Department. Hoodline also reported on a gunpoint arrest tied to a separate late-night emergency response in Cranston earlier this year.
The Cranston Police Department is led by Chief Colonel Michael J. Winquist, who has served in that role since October 2014 and oversees 153 sworn full-time officers along with specialized units including an Office of Community Outreach and a Police Explorer program, according to the department's own description of its command staff.
It remains unresolved whether the Park Avenue case will result in any charges.
