HOUSTON -- A Texas official says an investigation shows a metal detector that was unplugged allowed a 16-year-old to allegedly smuggle a loaded handgun past officers earlier this month.
Harris County Juvenile Probation Department Executive Director Harvey Hetzel says the youth apparently walked through the unplugged metal detector at a juvenile detention center on Nov. 9.
Hetzel says the metal detector wasn't working properly and it should have been reported instead. He says it "may well have been off for weeks."
Guards at the Harris County Juvenile Detention Center discovered a .25 caliber semiautomatic handgun about two hours after the youth was booked for possession of marijuana around 6 a.m.
Hetzel said two guards will be disciplined with two weeks off without pay. He said they searched the youth but didn't find the gun.
