GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Court documents have revealed how a 7-year-old student was able to get a hold of a gun and bring it to Cesar E. Chavez Elementary School earlier this month.
The incident happened on May 3, when a student at the school told another student he had a gun in his backpack. The other student told a staff member and the unloaded handgun was safely confiscated.
Police interviewed the boy, and he said that he found the 9mm pink handgun in a drawer next to his mother's bed, court documents say.
The student's mother, Aubrey Wilson, told police that her fiancée, Chelsea Berkley, was the owner of the gun.
Berkley admitted to purchasing the gun illegally off the streets for $150 from an unknown male in 2022, prior to her being jailed at Kent County Jail on unrelated charges.
The gun's serial number was destroyed, which Berkley said she was unaware of.
Berkley has been lodged in jail since Nov. 28, 2022, on an unrelated felony charge.
Wilson told police that she moved the gun from her closet to the drawer by her bed and then forgot about it sometime after learning about it being in the home.
The student told police that he was worried that his mom was "going to get into trouble" over the gun and decided to bring it to school inside his backpack.
He also told police that his mother told him "he could not tell anyone about the gun" prior to bringing it to school.
Wilson has been charged with fourth-degree child abuse, a misdemeanor, and Berkley has been charged with felony firearm, a 5-year felony.
Grand Rapids Public Schools have confiscated four guns from students this school year. Earlier this month, the district instituted a backpack ban and later passed a resolution for safe schools.
If you'd like to pick up a free trigger lock for use at home, you can pick one up at the Grand Rapids Police Department Headquarters from 6 a.m. to 11:45 p.m. Monday-Friday.
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