Two violent incidents at MLSD schools Friday

MOSES LAKE — Amid increasing attention turned to cases of assault at Moses Lake schools, police were called out to both Frontier Middle School and Larson Heights Elementary School on Friday night for reports of students acting violently.

At Larson Heights Elementary, police were called just after 10:30 a.m. Friday for a report of a fourth-grade student who lost control, tore items off the walls, walked on desks and threw things around the classroom. Teachers, unable to stop the child, were forced to evacuate the rest of the classroom.

The child was hiding in bushes when officers arrived. They kept an eye on things until the student’s parent could arrive. Due to the child’s age, no criminal charges are going to be filed, said Moses Lake Police Captain Mike Williams, and in such circumstances police rarely intervene.

“The only time that we’re going to intervene is when there’s a need to,” Williams said. “If the kid isn’t an immediate threat, we’ll wait for the parent to handle things.”

Four hours later, shortly before school ended, police were called out to Frontier Middle School for a report of a Life Skills student who lost control during a lockdown drill and assaulted two teachers. Because the student will not face criminal charges, Williams said the police department did not have any further details regarding the incident or the condition of the teachers.

Emry Dinman can be reached via email at edinman@columbiabasinherald.com.