The mother of an 11-year-old in Lansing, Michigan is irate over her son's expulsion from school, which she says was the punishment for her child's good deed.
Savitra McClurkin brought her complaints to the local school board this week, telling board members that last May, her son Sakir Everett was given a gun by an unidentified classmate in a school bathroom.
Sakir, who knows how to hunt and learned about gun safety from his godfather, knew the weapon was not allowed in school.
"Sakir's natural reaction was, there's no way I'm going to hold on to this gun all day," his mother said. "He proceeded to go to class ... and dismantled it in class. There was a teacher in class and everything. People were around and everything."
After taking the gun apart, McClurkin said her son "put it inside of a heater" in the classroom and threw the bullets in a garbage can.
"He didn't want it on his person, but he didn't want nobody to mess with it," she said about why her son dismantled the firearm.
When asked why he did not immediately tell an adult about the gun, McClurkin said it was because her son was scared and was never taught what to do in that situation.
The gun wasn't discovered by adults until other students informed a school administrator. The Lansing School District told NBC News that the student who brought the firearm was taken into custody by police, and that "disciplinary action would not have been warranted for disarming another student," but added that "the full account of the incident has not been reported."
In a separate statement to WILX-TV, the school district said:
In May 2025, a serious incident involving a firearm occurred at Dwight Rich Middle School. After a thorough investigation, and in accordance with Michigan law regarding dangerous weapons on school property, the Lansing School District determined that expulsion was necessary.
Expulsion is never a decision the district takes lightly. It is always considered a last resort. However, Michigan law provides very clear direction in cases involving dangerous weapons. The investigation—which included statements and video evidence—left no ambiguity and required this outcome.
The Lansing School District has both a legal and moral responsibility to ensure the safety of all students and staff. While this decision is difficult, our priority remains creating and maintaining a secure environment where learning can take place without fear. Upholding these standards is essential to protecting our school community.
Did Everett make a huge mistake by not informing a teacher or administrator that a fellow student had given him a loaded gun? Absolutely. Should he have been expelled for that mistake? Based on the information that we do have, I don't think so.
Yes, once Everett had the pistol in his possession he was in violation of the Michigan law prohibiting dangerous weapons on school property, and it was downright stupid for him to disassemble the gun in his classroom, no matter how much experience he has with firearms. But intent should matter here too, and it sounds like Everett intended to the right thing... even if it didn't work out that way. I'm not sure what lesson Everett has learned by being expelled over this incident, but it seems to me that the punishment doesn't fit the crime.
I hope that Everett can soon find a school that will accept him, but I'd also recommend that the Lansing public school system adopt the NRA's Eddie Eagle program ASAP. If students really don't know what to when they discover a gun (or one is handed to them), then it's critically important that they learn to "stop, don't touch, run away, and tell a grownup" before someone gets hurt.
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