LEAVENWORTH, Kan. — KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Parents and students are raising questions after a student brought a gun to Leavenworth High School on Monday.
Students told the school resource officer that a student had brought a gun to school.
The SRO detained the student and found a gun in his book bag. The district consulted with law enforcement and determined a lockdown was not necessary.
Several parents expressed concern about the incident and the safety of their children.
Dani Bradbury said she knew about a potential threat early Monday morning, but when she called the school, her concerns were dismissed.
"I called up to the school. They kind of blew it off like it was nothing. She was like, 'Oh everything's fine, there's no need for you to come pick her up,'" Bradbury said.
Bradbury said the communication problems continued into Tuesday, when she began receiving word of another possible threat at the school — not from the district, but from people in the community.
"8 in the morning, I'm starting to get messages from my daughter telling me that there's another threat possible — something going on at third lunch," Bradbury said. "We hadn't been notified as parents. I'm getting phone calls from people who don't even have kids at that school telling me something's going on at that school.”
Bradbury said the lack of communication from the district has eroded her trust in the school's ability to keep students safe.
"The communication's horrible. They've not let us know anything. We get random messages after the fact," Bradbury said. "The school is not doing anything to give these kids a sense of security or a sense of structure, and they sure as heck aren't giving the parents any either.”
Other parents echoed those frustrations.
"We really need to wake up and fix some things. You know, we need metal detectors, we need many things within our schools to help them," Kayla Martin said on Tuesday.
Bradbury also raised concerns about how the incidents are affecting students' ability to focus.
"The kids aren't able to pay attention, they can't focus on their schoolwork," Bradbury said. "As a parent, I'm scared. I don't want to send my kid back there when they're not showing me that they're doing anything to fix this.”
Parents also raised concerns about Kansas' statewide cellphone ban, which prohibits phones, smart watches and wireless headphones in schools. The ban raises questions about how parents can reach their children in an emergency.
"We understand it's a Kansas law to not have phones, but we also understand in emergency situations, our child still needs to get a hold of us," Bradbury said.
KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan asked questions about the law back in March. One of the bill's sponsors said he consulted law enforcement over concerns about emergency situations. He said law enforcement supports the decision, and that if parents flock to the school, it could block emergency personnel.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly focused on cellphones distracting students in class.
"Now, our kids will be able to focus on what their teacher is doing at the front of the class," Kelly said.
Bradbury said she feels the school has failed both students and parents.
"I don't trust that they're gonna let us know if an emergency really does happen. They were telling everyone on Monday it was a rumor," Bradbury said. "Search the bathroom, search the lockers, search everything. Whether it's a rumor or not, it needs to be checked out, especially the way the world is today. Like there is too much gun violence, way too much, and there's no reason for a child to be walking around carrying a gun in the first place. But the fact that they bring it to school, and the school is just, 'It's a rumor.' Nonchalant about it, like that's heartbreaking.”
KSHB 41 News contacted the school district Tuesday and Wednesday, and heard back Wednesday night.
A district spokesperson provided the following responses to our questions, including parent concerns about an incident at Warren Middle School:
What is the school district’s policy on communicating during emergencies?
When an emergency or safety concern arises at one of our schools, our first priority is always the safety of our students and staff. There is no one-size-fits-all response because every situation is different. Our immediate focus is assessing the situation, protecting our students and staff, and taking the appropriate steps to contain or address the concern.
Some situations can be contained immediately, allowing an investigation to begin promptly. Others require additional investigation while precautionary safety measures are put in place.
Monday’s incident at Leavenworth High School was contained immediately after administration was notified, and, in consultation with law enforcement, a Hold or Lockdown was not deemed necessary. At Richard Warren Middle School on Wednesday, administration and law enforcement needed time to investigate the reported concern, so the school was placed on a Hold as a precaution. Once the investigation determined the reported threat was not credible, the Hold was lifted.
Communication is an important part of our response, but our first responsibility during an active situation is ensuring the safety of our students and staff and addressing the immediate concern. We communicate with families once we have enough verified information to provide a clear and accurate update while avoiding speculation or unnecessary alarm.
Both Leavenworth High School and Richard Warren Middle School utilized ParentSquare to communicate directly with families and provide important updates.
What was behind the decision to send Monday’s email around the time school dismissed?
We make every effort to communicate with families as quickly as possible, but we also have a responsibility to make sure the information we share is accurate.
During an active situation, our immediate focus is the safety of our students and staff, containing the situation, and allowing administrators and law enforcement to conduct their investigation. We communicate once we have verified information that can be clearly and accurately shared.
We also have to be mindful of student privacy and due-process protections, particularly when an incident involves a juvenile. Our goal is always to communicate as promptly as circumstances allow without contributing to misinformation or unnecessary alarm.
Why was the student allowed to have a backpack if the school has a backpack policy?
This remains part of an ongoing investigation, so I am unable to provide additional information regarding that question at this time.
Does the school have any leeway on the statewide cell phone ban? Could the school make exceptions?
House Bill 2299 was signed by Governor Laura Kelly on March 19, 2026. The law requires Kansas public school districts to adopt policies prohibiting students from using or accessing personal electronic communication devices during the school day and requiring those devices to be turned off and securely stored away from the student in an inaccessible location.
The law defines the school day as the period from the start of school through dismissal and specifically includes classrooms, passing periods, lunch, recess, and other structured and unstructured learning settings.
As a Kansas public school district, Leavenworth USD 453 is required to comply with that law. The statute does provide specific exceptions, including circumstances involving a student’s IEP or Section 504 plan or a medical necessity approved by a licensed physician. Those exceptions are established by state law rather than something the district can broadly expand on its own.
For the most part, our students have responded positively to the change during the first several weeks of the school year, and we appreciate their cooperation as everyone adjusts to the new requirements.
And as for the incident at Richard Warren Middle School today:
We can confirm that a concern was reported at Richard Warren Middle School today. School administration and local law enforcement responded and investigated the information that was brought to their attention.The situation has been resolved, and there is no ongoing concern at the school at this time but we continue to encourage our students and families to report any concerns they may have so that our administration and local law enforcement can investigate them.
Parents are still searching for answers and peace of mind.
"Having the thought that my daughter's not safe at school, while I'm not physically there to protect her, is the worst feeling a parent could have," Bradbury said. "I just want my daughter to be in a safe environment, and she doesn't have that now, not at that school.”
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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