Overview
- East Pikeland Township Police responded to Hares Hill Elementary around 12:15 p.m. after a student found a handgun in a backpack.
- School staff locked the bag and firearm in a drawer before officers arrived.
- The Chester County District Attorney charged the student’s father, Russell Matthews, 58, with child endangerment and reckless endangerment.
- Investigators say the semiautomatic pistol held five rounds, and the child told a counselor after recognizing the gun as the father’s.
- Matthews told police he put the gun in the wrong backpack, while police continue the case with no injuries reported and no arraignment or bail details released.