Dec. 19—ELIDA — Two teenagers caught on security video brandishing BB guns in the Elida Elementary School parking lot in September pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges in Lima Municipal Court.
Damon Alexander and Landen McOwen, both 18, each pleaded guilty this month to a single count of illegal conveyance of an object indistinguishable from a firearm in a school zone, a first-degree misdemeanor.
Judge Tammie Hursh sentenced Alexander and McOwen to one year of probation.
The teenagers must complete a firearms safety class and community service — 40 hours for Alexander; 20 hours for McOwen — and pay $150 fines.
Failure to comply could result in jail time, as Hursh attached suspended jail terms to each sentence: 60 days for McOwen, and 55 days for Alexander, who previously spent five days in jail awaiting arraignment.
Administrators from Elida schools discovered security footage in September depicting a group of teenagers brandishing what appeared to be firearms in the elementary school parking lot after school hours on Sept. 5.
An investigation by Elida administrators and American Township Police concluded the teens likely possessed BB guns and posed no threat to students or staff. Police Chief Mike Haines described the incident as “a group of friends who picked the worst possible spot to play with their guns.”
Ohio law prohibits possession of firearms — real or fake — on school property, with exceptions for law enforcement, designated school employees and concealed permit holders who leave their handgun in a locked vehicle.
“It’s just not smart, or legal for that matter, to have weapons of any kind on school grounds for any reason,” Superintendent Joel Mengerink said on Thursday. “Those young people involved in this incident are finding out the hard way, both through the courts and through school discipline.”
Police charged Alexander, McOwen and two juveniles with a single count of illegal conveyance of an object indistinguishable from a firearm in a school zone.
McOwen pleaded guilty on Dec. 9. Alexander pleaded guilty Monday, averting a trial set to begin the same day.
An attorney representing Alexander declined to comment. McOwen’s attorney did not immediately return a request for comment Thursday.
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