Gun storage, dangers of social media among topics at Wake schools safety fair (2025)

WRAL staff

Wake County schools on Wednesday hosted a "Parent Safety Night" featuring discussions about safe gun storage, internet safety and mental health.

The resource fair was hosted at Garner Magnet High School, located at2101 Spring Drive. Attendees received a free gun lock courtesy of NC S.A.F.E., one of the event's partners, and got more information about how to get students safe.

Earlier this week, bullets were found in the cafeteria of a Raleigh elementary school. So far in 2025, loaded guns were found at Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School and Enloe High School, and more events were reported last year.

Tiffanie Miles, a Wake Schools parent said the recent news make her a little on edge.

"Obviously it invokes some fear; you don't love to see those headlines," Miles said.

William Lassiter, deputy secretary for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, told WRAL News ahead of the event that gun safety would be a main focus.

"83 guns were brought on the school campuses in the state of North Carolina last year," Lassiter said. "We want to prevent that from happening. We know that 75% of those cases, those guns came from the kids' own home."

Kendrick Scott, senior director of security with the school district, said the issue is not just a problem with Wake County.

"It's an everyone problem, and it's an everyone solution," Scott said.

The event also had a focus on social media safety to help kids stay away from predators. Within a week in February, two Amber Alerts were issued for 15-year-old girls in North Carolina that met child predators online. In both instances, the girls were located and the men involved face charges.

Public safety officials urge parents to remain vigilant and monitor their kids' online activity.

"We've seen an uptick in the number of sex traffickingincidents and scams that young people are falling for, for predators that aretrying to target young people," Lassiter said.

North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Wake County superintendent Robert Taylor also spoke at the event, along with leaders from the Garner Police Department, the PTA and the state Board of Education on Thursday during a news conference about the NC S.A.F. E. program.

Parents left the meeting energized and ready to help with spreading the word.

"Sharing with my friend group and playdates, making sure information is being disseminated the best way we can," Wake County parent Tiffanie Miles said.

UnSafe: North Carolina kids dying from gun violence

Many of Wednesday's speakers were featured last year in the WRAL Documentary"Unsafe: North Carolina kids dying from gun violence."

Gun violence kills more young people in the U.S. than any other cause. In 2024, WRAL Investigative Documentary Reporter Cristin Severance shed light on the devastating impacts of gun violence through the deeply personal story of one family's loss.The tragic death of 8-year-old Jenesis Dockery, who died four days shy of her 9th birthday after getting shot by her babysitter’s 11 year-old-son, shows just how many lives are destroyed by gun violence.

Watch the full documentary on WRAL.com.

Gun safety resources

Learn about how to store your firearms safely at home and on the go, how to talk to your children about gun safety and how to make sure that schools and playdates are a safe environment fromNC S.A.F.E.

Download a free gun safety kit or request a free gun lock fromProject Child Safe.

TheDurham County Gun Safety Programalso offers outreach events, best safety practices and free gun locks on request.

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