Parents express concerns after gun found on charter school campus, woman fires gunshot in another school parking lot

Parents in central North Carolina counties are expressing their concerns after a gun was found on campus of a charter school inside of a backpack, a woman fired a gun at another woman in the parking lot of a high school and threats were made at another school.

Lee County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy William Sturkie said authorities found a gun Wednesday at Central Carolina Academy at 1801 Douglas Drive in Sanford.

Sheriff’s office detectives detained the student and seized the gun. The sheriff’s office said the gun was reported stolen from Harnett county.

Authorities filed juvenile petitions for possession of a weapon on school property, possession of stolen property, carrying a concealed weapon and communicating threats.

Central Carolina Academy Principal Greg Batten said he’s grateful someone spoke up before anything happened.

“Our students have been really good,” Batten said. “We emphasize if you see something, say something and talk about safety.

“That’s safety at school, safety at home and safety in the community.”

The investigation is ongoing.

A woman is facing charges after Sanford police said she fired a gun at another woman around 7:39 p.m. Tuesday in the parking lot of Lee County High School at 1708 Nash St. in Sanford.

Marie Shavone Debrow, 37, of Sanford, is charged with assault by pointing a gun, felony possession of a firearm on school property, felony discharging a firearm on school property and discharging a firearm in the city limits.

Debrow is in Lee County Jail on a $16,000 secure bond.

Sanford police said Debrow and the woman she shot at know each other.

"The incident at Lee County High School occurred after hours and did not involve students or threaten student safety,” a district spokesperson wrote in a statement. “Our schools take safety and security very seriously.

“We have at least one school resource officer at each school and have security protocols and practices in place to keep our students and staff safe. In addition to felony charges, we have banned the adult in question from all Lee County Schools campuses."

Three separate threats of gun violence at Union Pines High School at 1981 Union Church Road in Cameron prompted several parents in the district to keep their kids home on Thursday. It included Kaysha Donahue.

“Actually seeing my son’s emotions, being nervous and asking me, ‘I don’t want to go to school tomorrow because I don’t feel safe,’ that’s heartbreaking,” Donahue said.

Early Thursday morning, Moore County deputies executed a search warrant at a home in Aberdeen, where they identified the juvenile responsible. Charges are now pending.

Teen will be charged after threats made against high school in Moore County

Messages went out to parents, but some wished for faster communication.

“When I came home yesterday and my son is the one that filled me in on the day,” Donahue said. “I don’t think that that’s appropriate.”

WRAL News also spoke with Virgil Watson, the grandfather of an eighth-grade student.

“You never know what someone has in their mind or what they’re capable of doing or planning on doing,” Watson said.

Threats against schools, especially made on social media, are not uncommon. In May, the Wake County Sheriff's Office was investigating at least seven threats made against schools in the district.

More recently, in November, Harnett Central High School was evacuated after an email sent to parents said that there was a bomb threat made and that students were at the football stadium. In Lee County, students and staff were locked down around 12:30 p.m. after an anonymous threat was called in to the school.