Suspended student returns to school

SWAMPSCOTT – A high school student who was suspended indefinitely in January for possessing a pellet gun in school, was allowed back into school on Tuesday.Superintendent Matthew Malone confirmed the indefinite suspension had ended.”I can confirm the student is attending classes,” he said. “We followed our code of discipline and used due diligence in all processes.”Attorney William DiMento, who volunteered to represent the juvenile, a METCO student, during the expulsion hearing, said the student is happy with the outcome of the hearing.”I’m happy justice prevailed,” he said. “He is a wonderful young man and he has been attending Swampscott schools since kindergarten. He has no previous record of disciplinary problems. He is happy to be back and committed to his education.”In January, administrators found a pellet gun in an unattended backpack in the Swampscott High School cafeteria. Superintendent Matthew Malone said a staff member found a student bag on a table in the lunchroom and looked for a name. When she opened the bag she found what she believed to be a gun and contacted the principal.According to school officials, Detective Rose Cheever examined the object and determined it was an air soft pistol, which is commonly known as a pellet gun. At the time of the incident, Malone said school officials identified the student who owned the bag and interviewed him.Malone said the student told police another student purchased the pellet gun online from Dick’s Sporting Goods for him and he intended to use the gun in the woods after school with his friends.Malone said it is not illegal for students to possess this type of weapon, but it is illegal to bring it to school and the police would pursue criminal charges. Details on the criminal case were not made public because the student is a juvenile.