12-year-old Newton County student facing felony for toy gun at school, deputies say

NEWTON COUNTY, Georgia - A 12-year-old student in Newton County has been charged with a felony after officials say he brought a toy gun to his middle school.

Officials say the Liberty Middle School student was arrested by Newton County deputies on Monday.

The preteen is charged with possession of a weapon in a school safety zone, a felony. The case will be turned over to the Juvenile Court System.

Newton County deputies cracking down on school threats

Newton County deputies arrested six young people for bringing weapons or making threats at school this month alone. 

Last week, a 13-year-old Liberty Middle School student was charged with terroristic threats and acts. A 12-year-old girl at Clements Middle School was arrested and also charged for online threats a week earlier.  

A 14-year-old boy from Alcovy High School was arrested on Oct. 21 after officials said they found a knife in his backpack.

Like many other districts, Newton County saw an uptick in threats following the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School last month, and it continued through October.

"What we have seen with these cases is verbal threats in the classroom towards students and teachers or online threats on Facebook or Instagram you know threatening to bring a gun to school or harm another student," Caitlin Jett of the Newton County Sheriff's Office said.

While the Newtown County School System does have a program called CHAMPS in fifth-grade classrooms that talks about the dangers of making threats or bringing weapons to school, deputies say it's crucial for families to also step in.

"It is really important for parents and guardians to tell their children that we are taking this seriously and that there are consequences for their actions," Jett said.

The sheriff's office turned all of those cases this month over to the Juvenile Court System.