Fort Bend ISD police work to keep weapons out of schools

At Fort Bend ISD the police chief is setting up a brand new program this year that allows students to instantly text the police if they see a classmate with an illegal weapon

HOUSTON – The new school year has officially begun and so begins the battle to keep deadly weapons off school campuses, off school buses and out of the classroom.

We're talking about everything from handguns and knives to ice picks and brass knuckles, even explosives.

At Dulles High School the Fort Bend ISD police caught a child with a homemade bottle.

Local 2 Investigator Bill Spencer asked Fort Bend ISD police chief David Rider about the weapon.

"You had one explosive device, a bottle bomb. Tell me about that," asked Spencer.

"I believe it was one of those bottles you fill it up with acid and put aluminum foil in and it makes an explosion. It's dangerous," said Rider.

So just how many weapons are out there?

Local 2 Investigates obtained the official weapons reports from five area school districts: HISD, Fort Bend, Cy-Fair, Katy and Aldine. We found over the last six years a total of 513 weapons have been taken from students on campus.

Records show last school year, Houston ISD seized 22 prohibited weapons, Katy ISD seized 17, Cy-Fair school officials seized 16 weapons, Fort Bend ISD also seized 16 and at Aldine ISD they confiscated 5 prohibited weapons.

Parents we talked to said they were shocked by the number of weapons being found.

"Honestly, I don't think kids understand the ramifications," said Anil George, who is a father. He added, "I don't think they understand death and dying."

Spencer asked Rider, "If you catch a kid on campus with a gun, a knife a set of brass knuckles what happens? Will you get arrested?"

Rider said, "Absolutely, immediately, absolutely."

At Fort Bend ISD the police chief is setting up a brand new program this year that allows students to instantly text the police if they see a classmate with an illegal weapon. They send their text to "Get Paid."

"When they text in a tip that somebody has a illegal weapon, or drugs on campus and we find it and we make an arrest, then that person gets paid a reward," said Rider.

So which schools had the most weapons seized in the districts we studied?

In the Katy ISD, West Memorial Jr. High had three weapons seizures last year.

In the Aldine ISD, the Compass School had two weapons seized.
At Fort Bend ISD, Ridgepoint High and Hightower High both had two weapons seizures.

And at HISD Madison High and Yates High both had two illegal weapons seizures last year.