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Kid disarms another student with a BB gun in a Smith County classroom

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Posted 10:05 PM, Jan 30, 2025

GORDONSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — An eighth-grade student has come forward to tell what happened inside his classroom after he saw another classmate with a BB gun in his waistband on Thursday.

Evan Boyd told me he spotted the butt of a gun in a classmate’s waistband. He said he planned to report it to the teacher, but decided it was too risky to wait.

So he jumped the student from behind, tackled him to the ground, disarmed him and shoved the weapon across the floor. He yelled gun as others ran from the room, and he held the student down. He said the teacher and SRO immediately intervened.

"Earlier today Gordonsville High School was placed on lockdown," the Smith County Board of Education wrote in a statement. "A teacher was able to use the Centegix critical alert badge to place the school on lockdown which immediately notified administrators and law enforcement leading to a swift resolution. The incident has been addressed and it was determined there was no serious threat to students and faculty. We are providing this information to inform our families and community and we will update if needed."

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a BB gun, but Boyd did not know that at the time.

Smith County Sheriff Steve Hopper confirmed Boyd’s quick action and said BB guns are also prohibited in schools.

I asked Evan what he thought at that moment.

"I was willing to risk getting shot to prevent others from harm," he told me.

Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at nick.beres@newschannel5.com.

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