ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KOAT) – A mother in Albuquerque, New Mexico, received a horrifying phone call from her son’s school this week.
The 4-year-old boy found a hypodermic needle on the school grounds and stuck himself in the arm.
When parents drop their kids off at school, they don’t expect to see them until the end of the day.
But for Jordan Selbee, she had to pick up her son sooner for a more serious reason after a La Mesa Elementary School teacher saw the 4-year-old with something unusual.
“She turned and saw that my son had something in his hand, so she instantly ran over to go see what it was,” Selbee described.
It turned out to be a hypodermic needle found on school campus Tuesday, with officials saying her son poked himself when playing on the playground.
“I mean, my first thought was, ‘What if there’s drugs in it and my kid’s overdosing?’ It was complete panic,” Selbee explained. “I was instantly crying before I even got to the school and it was five minutes away.”
Selbee took her son to the hospital right after. She says her son’s tests came back clear of any infection and he’s now doing fine.
Albuquerque Public Schools said in a statement, “We have a custodian who walks the grounds every morning looking for hazards. Unfortunately, it isn’t always possible to catch all hazards given how large the campus is.”
“I’ve never once seen anybody out in the yard cleaning up at all,” Selbee claimed.
A spokesperson for Albuquerque Public Schools says its police unit will be stepping up patrols and prosecuting any trespassers found on the elementary school campus.
However, Selbee wants something done to prevent incidents like this from happening to other children.
“You can’t just be desensitized to it. You’ve got to actually do something about it and stand up for him because otherwise, they’re going to keep ignoring it,” Selbee said.
The spokesperson for the school district says the La Mesa campus is gated, but individuals have been known to climb the fence to gain access to the grounds.
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