Police say a California teacher accidentally fired a gun while teaching a public safety class Tuesday, injuring one student.
Dennis Alexander, Seaside City’s mayor pro tem and a reserve officer with the Sand City Police Department, was teaching a lesson at Seaside High School in Seaside, California, when he pointed his gun into the ceiling and accidentally fired it, according to the city’s police chief.
Authorities said a 17-year-old student was injured by a bullet fragment or debris that fell off the ceiling. The student’s injuries appeared superficial and were not life threatening, police said.
Alexander has been placed on administrative leave from his teaching job, a spokesperson with the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District said.
It’s unclear why the teacher was displaying the firearm.
The shooting comes a day before students and teachers across the country participate on walk out to honor the 17 people killed at Stoneman Douglas and call for stricter gun control laws.
Guns in schools are illegal in California but there is an exception for peace officers or those granted specific permission.