8-Year-Old Carried a Gun Into a New York City School, Police Say

An 8-year-old boy in Brooklyn carried a gunto school on Thursday, according to the authorities, who said police officers found it after searching his backpack.

The child attends Public School 158 in the East New York neighborhood, and the police said he had threatenedanother student with the weapon earlier in the week. When the police arrived at the school and searched the boy’s belongings on Thursday, officers discovered what appeared to be an unloaded Taurus gun inside his bag.

The 8-year-old was not identified by the police, and several details about his case were not immediately clear. The authorities said that no students were injured, and the school is expected to send letters to families with information about what happened.

New York City schools have confronted a stubborn rise in discipline issues. Major felonies in schools remain under prepandemic levels. But a string of violent incidents involving children and teenagers has raised anxiety for some parents this year.

In recent months, several middle and high school students have been slashed in high-profile cases. This fall, three students at a Manhattan high school were taken into custody after the police said they brought two firearms and an imitation gun to school.

Some other school districts have grappled with similar issues, and the incidents have at times been severe: A 6-year-old boy in Virginia brought a gun from his home to school and shot his first-grade teacher in their classroom last year.

In New York City, Jenna Lyle, an Education Department spokeswoman, said in a statement that “it’s extremely worrying when a child this young has access to such a dangerous weapon.”

“Guns have absolutely no place in the hands of our young people,” Ms. Lyle said, adding that all students and staff were safe. “This incident is a deeply concerning example of the consequences of the proliferation of guns in our society and in our city.”