MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — WPTV is digging deeper into the issue of electric weapons on school campuses, like stun guns and Tasers.
In an exclusive report, our news team told you about a Palm Beach County girl who bought a stun gun for protection after school, and was expelled for carrying the device on the campus of Palm Beach Lakes Community High School.
That case, among others, now has a Palm Beach County School Board member wanting a change to state law.
When we talk about this issue of stun guns or Tasers on school campuses, we're not talking about the ones that police carry. In fact, the device that got a Palm Beach Lakes student arrested and expelled was only three inches tall.
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"I had no idea I was doing anything wrong. And if I did, I wouldn't have brought it on campus," Leeyah Brown said.
Brown shared her story with WPTV education reporter Stephanie Susskind after she was arrested and expelled for having a three-inch stun gun in her backpack at school.
"So you never planned to use it at school?" Susskind asked Brown.
"No. I never planned to use it at school," Brown answered. "It was used for after school. When I was walking to or from school. I would never use it at school."
WATCH: Palm Beach County girl bought stun gun for protection after school, then got expelled
Cases like Brown's and a handful of other students who didn't use the weapon on campus or have any previous discipline led Palm Beach County School Board chair Frank Barbieri to call for change at the state level.
Barbieri is appealing to state legislators to change the law so stun guns are not included in automatic expulsions.
"Leave it up to the superintendent to decide whether a little device that can't kill anybody or would seriously hurt anybody should require that a student be expelled for a year," Barbieri said.
So is this an issue on the Treasure Coast?
The School District of Indian River County told WPTV it hasn't had any reports of stun guns or Tasers on school campuses.
"I think every case needs to be looked at individually," said Indian River County parent Kelly Stephens.
Stephens is passionate about school safety.
"If we are going to be arresting minors for $15 tasers off of Amazon, we need to provide better education about all types of weapons and the lifelong consequences associated with bringing weapons on school campuses," Stephens said.
"In Martin County, are you guys seeing an issue with students having pocket stun guns on campus?" Susskind asked Frank Frangella, the chief of safety and security for the Martin County School District.
"As of right now, we have none," Frangella answered.
Frangella added that while he has no reports of students caught with those weapons, he understands why they are part of the state's zero tolerance statute.
"You are literally sending bolts of electricity through somebody's body," Frangella said. "And regardless if it's three inches, or you bought it at one of these shows or the mall or something like that, it can cause damage. There are so many things that can go wrong with it."
As for Brown, she was charged with a third-degree felony for possession of a weapon on school property. She's meeting all the conditions of the court and has a hearing next month where she expects the charge to be dismissed.
