ROCKFORD, Mich. — A charge has been filed against a Rockford firefighter who inadvertently dropped his handgun in a school driveway earlier this week while taking his child to school.
On Friday Kent County Prosecutor Christopher Becker said Jason Stoll has been charged with a misdemeanor for the reckless use of a firearm.
If convicted, Stoll could either spend 90 days in jail and/or pay a $500 fine.
The Rockford Department of Public Safety said it appreciates the prosecutor's review of their report and respects his decision to file charges.
"We initially recognized the significance of the location of this incident, which is why we took the step of reaching out to ensure the prosecutor was aware. We remain committed to cooperating fully with the prosecutor’s office," RDPS said in a statement.
Rockford Public Schools said a parent found a firearm in the driveway while dropping off Tuesday morning at the Rockford Community Services/Administration building.
On Thursday, the Rockford Department of Public Safety shared more details about what happened, including who the firearm belonged to.
District Superintendent Dr. Steve Matthews initially sent a letter home to parents and staff at Parkside, River Valley Academy and RPS Preschool to explain what happened.
He said the parent who discovered the weapon picked up the gun and locked it in their vehicle while calling the police.
Law enforcement arrived quickly and secured the weapon, Matthews said.
The school said the weapon fell from the vehicle of a different parent dropping off their child at the administrative building a few moments earlier.
Talking with 13 ON YOUR SIDE on Thursday, Dr. Matthews said, "It was very surprising. We were very thankful that a parent found the weapon instead of a student, very thankful that parent took precautions, put it in their car, locked it and called the police."
The superintendent noted, "It is always important for parents and others to understand that we need their cooperation, and we need them to be mindful that they play a part in helping us keep our building safe."
When asked Thursday, the superintendent could not specify exactly how long the gun was on the ground but did confirm it was loaded.
Rockford Public Safety said the owner of the handgun is an employee of the City's Department of Public Services, as well as a paid-on-call firefighter.
Rockford Police said they interviewed the man, who has been identified by Becker as Stoll, and learned he put his handgun on his vehicle with the intention of bringing it inside to store it for the day.
But in a hurry to get his child to school, he forgot the handgun was on his vehicle and drove off.
The weapon fell off his vehicle onto the parking lot entrance where it was found moments later by another parent.
Rockford Police said the employee wasn't working at the time of the incident, nor was he driving a city vehicle.
The handgun was his personal weapon, which he legally owns and has properly registered, authorities said.
"The employee feels tremendous remorse over his error, and we are grateful to the citizen who secured the weapon and alerted police," Chief of Public Safety Dave Robinson said.
RDPS said in hindsight, they realized they should have taken an additional step of retaining the handgun until the prosecutor's office completed its review of the report.
RDPS said it's usually their practice to return any lost firearms directly to owners once they've been identified and no charges are being filed.
However, in this case since school property was involved and the incident was being reviewed for charges, they said they should've retained the gun.
"We plan to use this as a learning opportunity so all of our officers can review future situations like this with more context," RDPS said in a statement.
Dr. Matthews added while thankful no one was hurt, parents have also been curious about the district's weapons policy.
He explained, "Our policy is we're a weapons-free zone for, as a school, but we do have some exceptions for people who have a license to carry a weapon, but they can't bring it in a building, they could have it in their car, for example, secured in their car if they came onto campus."
13 ON YOUR SIDE filed a public information request on Tuesday to learn more about what happened. We have not yet received a response.