Mountlake Terrace police detained a former Cedar Way Elementary School student early Friday, April 24 after the 13-year-old boy entered the school waving a stick and making threats.
No injuries were reported during the 8:30 a.m. incident at the school, 22222 39th Ave. W. said Mountlake Terrace Assistant Police Chief Pete Caw.
He said the boy had drawn dark circles around his eyes when he entered a school hallway and school principal Hawkins Cramer approached him. Waving a stick and saying he had scissors in his backpack, he told Cramer “he wanted to kill himself,” Caw said.
Later, in front of the school, parents and arriving students watched as police ordered the boy to raise his hands above his head. Police ordered the boy to the ground and pointed a taser at him but never discharged it. More police arrived and wrestled with the boy, who resisted their attempts to restrain him, Caw said. Police took the boy to Stevens Hospital for observation. He said the boy’s mother “was very gracious” in cooperating with police and school officials.
“He just needs to be evaluated more than anything else,” Caw said.
In a letter sent to parents, Cramer wrote that the incident was over “very quickly” but “was unfortunately witnessed by a large number of students, staff and parents.”
The Edmonds School District’s Flight Team, a group of counselors from nearby schools, arrived within the hour to “talk with students who wanted to discuss what they witnessed,” Cramer wrote.
He recommended parents reassure younger children they are safe and urged them not to “perpetuate rumors.”
“As I visited each class this morning to help the students process this morning’s events, I was again filled with pride for our students and staff,” Cramer wrote.
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