“My children will not come to school on Monday with a mask on,” the mother reportedly told the school board. “Alright? That’s not happening. And I will bring every single gun loaded and ready…”
A Virginia mother, who allegedly threatened a school board, telling the school officials that she'd show up to the meeting with a "loaded" gun if her kids were required to wear masks, has been arrested over the incident.
42-year-old Amelia King was charged Friday by the Luray Police Department with making an oral threat on school property after she was cut off from speaking during a public comment section of a Page County public school board meeting, CNN reported.
"Alright. No mask mandates," King reportedly said to the board members Thursday. "My children will not come to school on Monday with a mask on. That's not happening, and I will bring every single gun loaded and ready."
The woman has been released on a $5,000 bond. King has since emailed an apology to a school board member, which was read later at the meeting where she insisted she was "only speaking figuratively" and apologized for her outburst.
"I in no way meant to imply 'all guns loaded' as in actual firearms, but rather all resources I can muster to make sure that my children get to attend school without masks," the email reportedly said.
The school board was debating COVID-19 restrictions in light of an order by newly-elected and recently sworn-in Gov. Glenn Youngkin's executive order saying parents throughout the state could decide for themselves if their children should wear face masks at school. The board voted 4-2 to support making mask-wearing a parental choice. However, school staff will continue to be required to wear face masks, including school bus drivers and operators.
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