Law enforcement officials have decided to move forward inseeking to determine whether two Wesson Attendance Centerprincipals should be charged with a crime in their handling of agun-related student matter.

Wesson Town Prosecutor Bob Lawrence said affidavits were filedThursday in circuit court seeking a probable cause hearing todetermine if Wesson Attendance Center Principal Billy Britt andElementary School Principal Ronald Greer violated the law by notnotifying local authorities when a student was found with a handgunat the school Feb. 21.

The next step, Lawrence said, is for the court administrator toset a hearing date.

“I have absolutely no idea when that will be,” he said.

Wesson Police Chief Steve Carlisle alleged Britt and Greerfailed to notify local law enforcement as required by law about theincident. Additionally, he claimed Britt then obstructed justice bynot cooperating in the investigation of the incident.

Under state law, before a teacher can be charged with committinga crime while in the performance of their duties, there must be aprobable cause hearing to determine if there is sufficientevidence. The law was enacted to protect certain positions ofauthority from undue incarceration.

The affidavits stem from an incident at the school Feb. 21 whena seventh-grade student brought a handgun from home onto thecampus.

Britt has said the student never posed a danger to otherstudents, had no bullets and never displayed the handgun in athreatening manner to other students. School officials immediatelyconfiscated the pistol after being notified of it by a fellowstudent.

“We followed the requirements of our handbook,” Britt said thenext day. “We did notify the proper authorities. We didn’t notifythe police department because we have security here we workwith.”

The school district’s attorney, Olen Bryant, was also contactedand the school followed his guidance, Britt said.

The student was placed under house arrest in his parents’custody in Brookhaven following a hearing in Juvenile Court inHazlehurst, Carlisle said.