Wake sheriff meeting with lawmakers after 7 guns found at NC schools this week

Three guns were confiscated at Charlotte high schools on Thursday morning, WCNC reports.

Just a day ago, one weapon was found at Cary High School and another at high school in Alamance County.

The student who brought an unloaded handgun to Cary High School will face a year-long suspension. That student's parents will not face charges, officials said.

Wake County Sheriff Gerald Baker said in some instances, parents should be held responsible if their child brings a gun to school. He would not comment directly on the case involving the Cary high school student.

Daniel Meier, a Durham attorney, said that it is a crime if a gun owner does not have their weapon secured and then a child uses it. But, the parent could only face charges if prosecutors could prove that they behaved negligently.

"If it's secured properly, if you're doing what you're supposed to do, then there's no issues," he said.

While laws do exist to hold gun owners accountable, they are not used often, Meier said. The parents of a student accused of gunning down his classmates in Michigan were charged with involuntary manslaughter — which experts say does not happen often.

Baker hopes to see prosecutors bring down tougher sentences and is speaking with lawmakers to create stricter laws around prosecuting parents for gun crimes.

"We've got to start talking about it," Baker said.

As of Thursday, 21 guns have been confiscated on a Charlotte-Mecklenburg School campus this school year.

In Cary and to east, west of Triangle, guns found at schools in NC