A ninth grader at Parkville High School was charged as an adult on Friday after officers found a gun on campus.

Baltimore County Police said officers responded to the school at the 2600 block of Putty Hill Avenue around 11:30 a.m. after administrators reported seeing what appeared to be the handle of a handgun in the book bag of a 16-year-old student.

The school’s staff were investigating a report of an odor of marijuana when they asked to search the book bag of the student, wrote Maureen Astarita, the school’s principal, in an email to parents.

Police say that as the student ran away and left the school property, administrators noticed what they believed to be the handle of a handgun in the book bag.

At 11:30 a.m., the school’s staff activated a lockdown, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving the building without the principal’s permission and requiring that students remain in their classrooms with the doors locked.

Off of the school’s property, the student was immediately arrested by a school resource officer assigned to Parkville.

Police say the school resource officer later found an unloaded firearm that appeared to have been discarded, as well as a discarded magazine after searching outside of the school’s property.

The student faces consequences aligned with BCPS policy, including potential expulsion, and is currently charged as an adult with a handgun violation.

Family, students and staff can report any safety concerns directly to the school’s administration or to Safe Schools Maryland.

Astarita urged that parents to remind students that “harmful choices and disruptive and dangerous behaviors have a significant impact on our entire school community.”

Astarita, in her email to Parkville parents, said counselors and staff are available to provide support to students and parents regarding Friday’s incident. Students ages 13 and older have access to unlimited telehealth therapy through secure messaging with a licensed therapist, by way of a partnership between Baltimore County Public Schools and Talkspace.

Parkville High School is a community school in the northeast part of the county, between Towson and White Marsh.

This article has been updated.