Teacher Caught With Gun at School

By Venice Buhain And Jeremy Pawloski, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

Sep. 26–LACEY — A 33-year-old teacher at Nisqually Middle School is on administrative leave after school officials discovered she brought a .38 Special handgun — along with bullets — on school grounds Thursday, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office.

Teacher Mary Catherine Roe, who lives in Shelton, told deputies she was fearful of her husband and that he used a gun while assaulting her, according to a sheriff’s report. Roe also has a domestic violence protection order against her husband, according to Mason County records.

No decision was made Monday about whether Roe will face criminal charges, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dave Ryan said.

Roe is under investigation for the charge of unlawfully carrying a firearm, which was in her purse, on school grounds. The law says no one except law enforcement officers can bring a firearm onto school grounds. The charge is a gross misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine.

Nisqually parents received a letter from the school Friday explaining that a staff member brought a weapon to school and was placed on leave. The letter reminded parents that it is against state law to bring any firearm to a school campus. The letter did not name the staff member.

Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Brian Wharton for North Thurston Public Schools declined to confirm or deny who was on leave. No charges have been filed and no district disciplinary action has been taken, he said. Students did not see the weapon, Wharton said.

Roe is a language arts teacher, according to the school’s Web site.

Wharton said the district is cooperating with the sheriff’s office. District officials will consider the results of the criminal investigation before they decide on any disciplinary action.

He said the district policies don’t specifically address what to do if staff members bring weapons to school, though it references the state law forbidding firearms on campuses.

“We expect our staff members to follow the law,” he said.

School officials learned about the gun after a co-worker asked Roe how she is protecting herself against her husband, the police report states, and she told him that she had a gun in her purse, according to the sheriff’s department.

The co-worker told Nisqually Principal Karen Owen, the report states, and school officials called deputies.

Roe told deputies “that she was aware that she should not bring the gun to school. She thought that if she was discovered that she would simply be asked to put it in her vehicle. Ms. Roe said that she has a concealed weapons permit and is proficient at shooting because of her military training.”

Roe was visibly upset and crying when police came to the school Thursday to investigate, the report states.

Roe told deputies that her father had purchased the handgun for her after her husband had assaulted her Aug. 5, “and she has carried it with her ever since,” the report states. Roe’s husband, Shawn Roe, is awaiting trial on pending charges of unlawful imprisonment and malicious mischief, according to Mason County records.

Her claim that she has a concealed weapons permit could not be confirmed. An official at the state Department of Licensing said Monday that the names of individuals who carry concealed weapons permits is confidential and is not open to the public under state law.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s report does not state whether Roe’s handgun was loaded, but states that the gun, along with five bullets, were confiscated.

Roe has filed a divorce petition, which is pending, against her husband, according to court records.

The district has the discretion whether to report the incident to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, which is in charge of teacher licensing, state superintendent spokeswoman Kim Schmanke said. It is not one of the offenses that set off an automatic investigation by the state, she said.

Roe could not be reached for comment Monday at a phone number for her residence in Shelton.

After a concerned parent at Monday’s school board meeting questioned the lack of a weapons policy for employees, school board President Judy Wilson responded that she would be interested in exploring a policy for employees who bring weapons to campus.

“I personally believe that we need to have one. We have one about drugs and alcohol,” she told the parent and the school board.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Olympian, Olympia, Wash.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.

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