Metro

Metal detector installed at Staten Island high school after violent incidents

City officials installed a metal detector at an embattled Staten Island school Wednesday after a series of violent incidents.

The scanner was placed at Susan Wagner High School in the wake of two videotaped fights in and near the school — one of which involved a gun.

On Monday, a Wagner student was stomped in the head while another teen was pistol-whipped just outside the school, according to video footage posted to social media.

That incident prompted a brief lockdown.

Another videotaped brawl between students took place in a Wagner gymnasium that same day, sources said.

Students were subjected to another lockdown Tuesday after someone reported a teen with a firearm near the building. Three suspects were eventually apprehended and a gun was recovered.

Stills from a video released show a fight involving a handgun outside Susan Wagner High School.
Multiple bouts of violence involving weapons have prompted the city to install a metal detector at the high school.
Student holding handgun stands over another student laying on the ground.
A fight involving a handgun was caught on film outside of Susan Wagner High School in Staten Island.

City Hall has placed scanners at schools in the wake of major weapons busts or fights this year.

School safety agent union chief Greg Floyd has lobbied for more widespread use of metal detectors, while detractors argue that they criminalize students.

Kids at schools across the city said they are arming themselves primarily for reasons of self-defense amid surging crime.

While violent incidents — including stabbings — have occurred inside DOE buildings this year, many students said they are more concerned about their trips to and from their school buildings.