Incidents at Heritage High result in public requests for metal detectors

Walk-through metal detectors like this are used at some schools.

By Doug Spoon, Editor

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Heritage High School senior Preslee Hart was sitting in class Thursday morning when the announcement was made that the school was going on lockdown.

This, she said, did not really alarm students because lockdowns and emergency drills have become commonplace – usually with no negative result. However, reactions changed when the teacher in Hart’s classroom said that police were searching for a student with a gun.

“No one took it seriously until then,” she said. “Kids were finding the post online and seeing the picture of the gun. I wouldn’t say we were panicked, but people were scared. The teacher told everyone to go get in the corner. We covered up the windows and some kids used belts to tie the door closed.”

Hart said students began scrambling to find scissors to defend themselves. Boys who carry their athletic equipment with them pulled out baseball bats. Then they waited until the all-clear was given.

The student was found with a BB gun in his possession and was escorted off campus. No arrest or other form of discipline has been announced at this point.

“This isn’t the first time,” Hart said about such an incident at the school. “Kids have brought knives to school. There are gang fights, drugs. I don’t understand why the school hasn’t done anything.

“I’m a senior; I’m almost done. But my sister has to go here the next three years. I don’t want to come home one day and find out something bad happened. Most students agree with me on this, but not all of them take it seriously. Fortunately, a lot of parents are now speaking out.”

Hart said she has spoken to and emailed school administrators several times with her concerns, but no additional security measures have been introduced.

Calls on social media for increased security became more frequent the next day when a report circulated that students were planning to have a knife fight on Friday. School staff was alerted by a memo from the district and there was additional police presence on campus. No further incidents were reported.

Now what? That’s the question being asked by parents of students not only at Heritage High School, but other high schools in Menifee governed by the Perris Union High School District. Each school has a police School Resource Officer (RSO) assigned to patrol the campus, but many say that is not enough.

Heritage, Paloma Valley and Liberty high schools do not have metal detectors at the entrance to campus. Should they be added? A number of people on social media are calling for parents to attend the Nov. 12 PUHSD board meeting and demand action.

“Let’s make our voices heard!” wrote one woman on Facebook in response to a Menifee 24/7 posting about Thursday’s incident. “HUSD [Hemet Unified School District] has metal detectors in every high school. How about PUHSD?” She attached a calendar announcement about the Nov. 12 meeting at 4 p.m. at the district office, located at 155 E. 4^th Street in Perris.

“I hope the school takes a firmer approach on school safety and security,” wrote another. “I hope having metal detectors or metal detector wands is considered. Whatever it takes to protect the students. We don’t want to be another Columbine, Santana, or Sandy Hook.” One Menifee 24/7 post about the situation elicited 163 comments.

Ironically, the agenda for Wednesday’s board meeting includes an item regarding funding for the RSOs currently assigned to PUHSD schools. According to the item up for approval, an adjustment in funding sources is requested for the $627,000 that is spent annually on RSOs.

The cost per RSO in Riverside County averages about $200,000 per year, but the cost is often shared. PUHSD shares the cost of the Perris High RSO with the City of Perris. The district shares the cost of RSOs at Paloma Valley and Heritage with the City of Menifee. Liberty, which is located outside the City of Menifee, does not receive a portion of its funding from the City.

Should the number of RSOs at schools be increased? Most critics say even that wouldn’t be sufficient.

“We have a great school officer, but there’s only so much one officer can do,” Hart said. “They can’t be in every hallway, in every single bathroom. The least they could do is bring in metal detectors.”

There is no database with numbers showing the percentage of California school districts that use metal detectors. According to the website schoolsecurity.org, most districts that do have metal detectors don’t use them daily, except in “larger urban districts with chronic safety concerns.” Some fund them through grants, safety bonds, or local partnerships.

According to that source, walk-through metal detectors cost from $3,000 to $5,000 per unit, but full district implementation of such a system may cost from $250,000 to $500,000.

A  case study by Evolv Technology states that Hemet Unified School District purchased from Evolv eight single-lane metal detector systems and three dual-lane systems, plus software. Hemet USD hasn’t published specific figures, but industry pricing for Evolv systems suggests that the district spent between $300,000 and $400,000, plus installation and maintenance.

A Menifee 24/7 inquiry to Hemet USD was not answered, but a teacher at a Hemet high school who asked not to be identified said, “Since we’ve implemented metal detectors, it’s been such a drastic positive change.”

Menifee 24/7 reached out to PUHSD Superintendent Jose Araux, Heritage principal Jose Tepete, and district Chief Human Resources Officer Alfredo Andrade, asking whether metal detectors have or would be discussed as an option. Only Andrade responded.

“We will continue to work with local law enforcement and determine what options we have going forward,” wrote Andrade in an email. “At this time, we aren’t able to address what actions the board may or may not choose to do. Once we have an announcement, we are happy to share it with you.”

Another agenda item for Wednesday’s meeting could generate discussion on this topic. Item 14.3 asks the superintendent to coordinate a study of additional security needs at Perris Lake High School and California Military Institute. The staff report states, “Recent concerns have arisen regarding the front office security doors and entranceways at Perris Lake High School and the California Military Institute. Specifically, the front office security door at PLHS lacks modern controlled-access systems used at other high schools throughout the District. At CMI, the front entrance currently has a “half door” that poses a security issue, among other concerns.”

Could that discussion be broadened or a subsequent agenda item introduced to include security concerns at the other PUHSD schools? That might depend on public comments made at the meeting.

Wednesday’s meeting is listed as starting at 4 p.m., but because of a closed session and short recess, the regular PUHSD board meeting isn’t scheduled to begin until approximately 5 p.m. Guests are encouraged to arrive early for seating. For those who can’t attend, an audio recording is made available on the district website later. PUHSD board meetings are not recorded on video.