Northwest ISD discovered bullets lodged in its new middle school in Northlake, and has been granted a temporary restraining order against a local gun range as a result.
The district filed a lawsuit against Quail Creek Shooting Range after bullets were found in the south facade of Barksdale Middle School, a newly-built campus in the Pecan Square community of Northlake.
Friday afternoon, the district announced it was granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) by a county judge in an effort to prevent more bullets from reaching the school property.
The campus is expected to welcome students on the first day of classes Wednesday.
Northwest ISD had said it was not asking the gun range to shut down, rather to implement more safety measures. That stands true even after the TRO ruling.
“As a result… the gun range is restrained from allowing the discharge of a bullet from a firearm that can travel the distance to Barksdale Middle School until appropriate safety measures are implemented,” said BMS Principal Michelle Jennings in an email to parents.
According to the district, a temporary injunction hearing will take place later this month while the restraining order remains in place.
Throughout the legal process, the gun range can continue to operate with firearms that are incapable of reaching the BMS campus.
“If [the gun range] implements the appropriate safety measures, it can resume all operations,” said Jennings. “If the gun range does not comply with the order, there may be further legal action.”
NISD filed a police report when the first bullet struck the school’s exterior brick while construction crews were on site in May.
According to Northlake Mayor Brian Montini, the construction supervisor did not believe the shot originated from the gun range, and investigators were unable to identify its source.
When a second bullet was found on July 28 lodged in an exterior widow of the football stadium press box, the district reached out directly to Northlake PD, which then contacted the gun range owner.
Investigators have not confirmed the source of this bullet, either.
According to court documents, the campus backs up to the gun range’s property line. There is a berm designed to stop bullets from leaving the premises, but the district said it appears patrons can still fire over the berm and strike the school.
“Based on the location of the bullets, it is believed the bullets came from people shooting toward the school from inside the Gun Range,” the district alleged.
District staff met with the owner of the range on July 30 about the safety concerns, however, NISD said the range has done nothing to increase safety measures, despite agreeing there could be more taken to prevent bullets from being fired over the berm.
“This lawsuit seeks injunctive relief to enjoin the Gun Range from operating in a manner that negligently allows bullets fired from the Gun Range to damage public school district property and endanger the safety of middle school students and parents, campus staff and visitors,” said NISD in its filing.
With the first day of school just days away, Northwest ISD has already taken measures to work around the gun range’s schedule.
Barksdale Middle School was supposed to host its Bronco Camps during the day Thursday and Friday. However, due to safety concerns, the campus pushed the events back to a time when the gun range had closed operations.
The explanation for the last-minute change came in the form of an email from Jennings around 3 p.m. Thursday.
“The safety of our students and staff is my top priority as your principal, and I’m writing today to make you aware of steps we are taking to protect everyone on our campus after two bullets were discovered on our property,” she said in the email. “As parents and guardians, you entrust the care of your children to our school, and the safety of all our students and staff will always rank as my top priority as your principal and the top priority for Northwest ISD. Please rest assured that we are exhausting every avenue to protect our students and staff, and we will provide further updates before the start of school.”
Barksdale Middle School is Northwest ISD’s eighth middle school campus in the district.
It will welcome its first rounds of students Wednesday.
“Thank you for your ongoing support of our school as we worked to quickly remedy this situation,” said Jennings. “I am eager to welcome our seventh- and eighth-graders to Bronco Camp this evening as we prepare for the start of the school year.”
The Quail Creek Shooting Range is a family owned and operated public gun range that has been operating since 1980, according to its website. It is open Tuesday through Sunday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.
Montini said the range is outside of Northlake town limits, so it is not under the town’s regulatory authority. However, Northlake PD, the Denton County Sheriff’s Department and Northwest ISD are all working together to investigate the incident.
“I understand why parents and residents are concerned,” he said in a post to social media. “The town and our police department are taking this seriously and will continue working closely with the appropriate agencies.”
(Note: This article was updated at 1:43 p.m. Friday, Aug. 7 to include the ruling from a county judge)
