A chemistry teacher at the Florida high school where 17 people were fatally killed on February 14 has been arrested. Authorities say he left a gun in a public bathroom, where a drunk homeless man picked it up and fired it. The gun was loaded.
No one was injured, and the teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School was charged with failing to safely store a firearm, a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of 60 days in jail. The weapon belonged to Sean Simpson, who teaches chemistry, according to the Broward County Sheriff's Office. Simpson posted a $250 cash bond and was released.
Simpson told deputies he'd left his gun in the restroom by accident, the sheriff's report says. By the time Simpson realized his mistake, the Glock 9mm was already in the hands of the vagrant, Joseph Spataro, who had picked it up and fired. The bullet hit a wall.
Simpson was able to grab the handgun away from Spataro, who was charged with firing a weapon while intoxicated and trespassing. He told deputies he'd fired the gun to see whether it was loaded. The bullet didn't strike anyone and was later recovered by officials, who were alerted to the incident by a witness running from the scene.
"There was a reasonable likelihood that the firearm could have ended up in the hands of a child or the discharge of the firearm could have wounded another person or child," officials wrote in the arrest report.
The students at Douglas, who started the Never Again movement to advocate for gun control in the aftermath of the Valentine's Day shooting, expressed disappointment and frustration at the situation.
"I've spoken with Mr. Simpson before, never thought there would be that amount of negligence from a Douglas teacher," Ryan Deitsch, a senior at Douglas and one of the leading voices of the Never Again movement, told Salon.
Another senior, Chris Grady, said, "This is precisely why [arming teachers] is a horrible idea. If he forgot it at the pier, what’s to stop him from leaving it out during a class and anybody could find it?"
Samantha Deitsch, a freshman and Ryan's sister, said Simpson shows a "lack [of] responsibility in owning that weapon."
"God forbid he left it in the restroom at school or on his desk, or anywhere accessible to students," she continued. "The outcome could be horrific." Deitsch added that the incident points to the work of the Never Again movement, which she said seeks "to promote background checks and common procedures to make sure responsible and eligible people can own a gun."
Dylan Bowerman, a junior, told Salon the incident is "representative of what could happen if teachers had guns in school – or anybody other than the police for that matter."
"As far as I'm aware, police officers around the country are trained in an important skill called weapon retention, which is focused on never losing possession or control of their weapon under any circumstance," he explained. "This is part of the reason I support more guns on campus – but only on the belt of a police officer. I personally add this incident to the already long list of reasons nobody else, including teachers, should have guns on campus."
Douglas senior and Never Again founding member Sofie Whitney told Salon, "This situation is a prime example of why we should not be arming our teachers. What if he had accidentally left his gun in a classroom? Not logical."
In addition to teaching chemistry, Simpson is known for being the teacher at Douglas who said he would be willing to arm himself while on the job to protect the high school.
"I know there are some of us that are willing to take the training if it was offered and probably be another line of defense," Simpson said during an interview with MSNBC, when asked about the prospect raised by President Trump of arming teachers. "But again that is a complicated subject and I'm not sure if it's the answer. I think it's easier to get these types of weapons out of the hands of people that aren't meant to do anything but kill."
On Tuesday, the Broward School Board unanimously rejected Florida's new program to arm school staff, part of a new law the state's legislature passed in the wake of the February 14 shooting.
WPLG-TV contacted Simpson, who would not comment but did say carrying a weapon around did not violate school board rules. He continues to be employed, and no disciplinary action is expected to be taken against him, added the station.
Simpson, who supervised student activist Emma Gonzalez on a science project and appeared in a short documentary made by David Hogg before the shooting in which he is referred to as a "Problem Solver," has been supportive of the students' fight for gun control and attended the March For Our Lives rally, a worldwide crusade to demand government action on gun control, in Washington, D.C. on March 24.
Shares