NewsOne
Kiera Wilmot, 16, is by all known accounts an excellent student with impeccable behavior. She is also — now — a marked woman who will be tried as an adult for discharging a weapon on school grounds in what was allegedly a bungled science experiment,” reports WSTB.com.
On the morning of Monday, April 20, Wilmot mixed some household chemicals inside of an 8 oz. bottle of water. The top flew off the bottle and a cloud of smoke erupted.
There was no damage caused and no one was injured, but Wilmot is still being tried as an adult on charges of “possession/discharge of a weapon on school grounds and discharging a destructive device.”
“She made a bad choice. Honestly, I don’t think she meant to ever hurt anyone,” principal told WTSP. “She wanted to see what would happen [when the chemicals mixed] and was shocked by what it did. Her mother is shocked, too.”
Wilmot was taken in handcuffs to a juvenile assessment center and expelled. She will have to complete her diploma in an expulsion program.
Even though several classmates came to her defense to vouch for her character, Polk County Schools released the following statement:
“Anytime a student makes a bad choice it is disappointing to us. Unfortunately, the incident that occurred at Bartow High School yesterday was a serious breach of conduct. In order to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment, we simply must uphold our code of conduct rules. We urge our parents to join us in conveying the message that there are consequences to actions. We will not compromise the safety and security of our students and staff.”
But even the staff seem less than enthusiastic about Wilmot’s punishment:
“She is a good kid,” said Pritchard. “She has never been in trouble before. Ever.”
As previously reported by NewsOne, a middle school and a high school in Bangor, Michigan were placed on lock down on Friday, April, 19, 2013, after at least 2 explosives detonated inside of the schools.
Though a student admitted to planting the devices, he will only be tried as a juvenile and faces only 5 years.
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