Police Say Boy Fired Gun Into Bus Roof

COLUMBIA, S.C. – An 11-year-old boy fired a handgun into the ceiling of a school bus Thursday and was arrested when the weapon was found in a girl’s locker, authorities said.

Investigators think the boy accidentally fired the weapon while other students were boarding the bus about four miles from the Olympia Learning Center, a school for children with disciplinary or behavioral problems.

The bus driver heard a popping noise but did not see anything, said Karen York, spokeswoman for the school district.

Later the driver found a shell casing on the bus and saw a hole in the ceiling. She notified school officials, who searched the girl’s locker, Cowan said.

The boy and the 14-year-old girl were charged with possession of a firearm on school grounds, police said. The boy also was charged with discharging a firearm and possession of a gun by a person under age 21, said Lt. Chris Cowan, spokesman for the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.

York said the driver acted appropriately, telling a radio dispatcher about the sound and receiving permission to continue to school.