The parents of a third-grade student at Lee Hill Elementary School in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, were arrested and charged after a handgun discharged in their child's backpack Monday morning, according to the Spotsylvania County Sheriff's Office. No one was injured during the incident, which happened around 10:50 a.m.
"Ciara Armstead, 36, and Terrence Carroll Jr., 34, were charged with recklessly leaving a loaded, unsecured firearm so as to endanger the life or limb of a child under the age of 14 (misdemeanor) and, while having custody of a child, willfully or negligently causing or permitting the life of such child to be endangered (felony)," a Spotsylvania Sheriff's Office spokesperson said.
They were released on a $5,000 unsecured bond and are due back in court April 11.
"The parents of the child cooperated with the investigation," the spokesperson said. "The child involved in the incident is not being charged."
Investigators said the child found the gun at home and put it into his school backpack.
While at school, the child reached into his bag to get something and inadvertently pulled the trigger.
"Once the gun discharged, the teacher evacuated all 26 students from the classroom and notified the School Resource Officer who was on site," the Spotsylvania County Sheriff's Office wrote in a statement.
The school is located near Fredericksburg, Virginia, about 50 miles north of Richmond.
