California Teacher Accidentally Fired Gun In Classroom, Students Injured

A teacher accidentally fired a pistol inside a California classroom while lecturing about public safety and injured three students, according to police. 

Dennis Alexander was aiming the firearm at the ceiling the moment he unintentionally fired it Tuesday at Seaside High School, stated Abdul Pridgen, the city's police chief. 

Bullet pieces ricocheted off the ceiling and striked a 17-year-old student in the neck, Pridgen stated. Soon after the event, class resumed as normal. The teen’s dad, Fermin Gonzales, stated he rushed his son to the hospital facility after the 17-year-old came back from school with blood on his shirt along with a neck wound. “He’s shaken up, however he’s going to be OK ,” Gonzales informed KSBW . “I’m just pretty upset that no one told us anything and we had to call the police ourselves to report it.” Two additional students were additionally hurt by debris, however law enforcement stated each of their accidental injuries are minor. Alexander also serves as a reserve officer for Sand City law enforcement as well as being a Seaside city councilman. The police department and school district placed Alexander on administrative leave while looking into whether or not he was lawfully permitted to possess a firearm on campus. "I think a lot of questions on parents' minds are, why a teacher would be pointing a loaded firearm at the ceiling in front of students ," Superintendent PK Diffenbaugh told KSBW . "Clearly in this incident protocols were not followed ." Firearms along with other weapons are forbidden on school property , however there are exceptions connected with law enforcement .