Northwest ISD discovered bullets lodged in its new middle school in Northlake, and has filed a lawsuit against a nearby gun range as a result.
The district filed the 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.
Northwest ISD said it is not asking for the gun range to shut down, rather to implement more safety measures.
The campus is expected to welcome students on the first day of classes Wednesday.
“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 the district in its filing.
NISD filed a police report when the first bullet struck the school’s exterior brick while construction crews were on site in May.
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.
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.
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 Barksdale Middle School Principal Michelle 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,” said Jennings 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.
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.
