On the morning of October 8, a routine school day turned into chaos at Gompers Elementary-Middle School in Detroit. Investigators say 37-year-old Lacara Anita Parks walked past metal detectors waving off alarms, entered the building, and handed a pocket knife to her 13-year-old daughter. Minutes later, that teen allegedly stabbed another 13-year-old classmate several times.
School staff say that when Parks entered, the school’s metal detector went off—but the on-duty security guard didn’t search her. That guard has since been removed pending an internal probe. Meanwhile, the district placed the assistant principal on administrative leave while officials review what went wrong.
Prosecutors argue that Parks retrieved the knife from home after learning of earlier tension between her daughter and the student. She then bypassed security, entered the school, and gave her daughter the weapon “for protection,” allegedly saying it was needed for her daughter’s safety. Not long after, the daughter used the knife to stab her classmate in the head, back and arm—leaving a wound that ran from neck to ear. The younger girl survived and has since been hospitalized and released.
On October 9, the daughter had a preliminary hearing. She was charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm and possession of a weapon in a weapons-free school zone, and was released on a $10,000 cash surety bond. She’s also been ordered to have no contact with the victim, other students at Gompers, and cannot possess knives.
On October 15, Parks appeared in court. She faces two misdemeanors: contributing to the delinquency of a minor and possession of a weapon in a weapons-free school zone. The judge set a $50,000 personal bond, imposed a GPS tether, and told her she must avoid the school at all times. Her next court date is October 29. During the arraignment, prosecutors claimed she “knew about her daughter’s previous altercation,” went home to fetch the knife, and brought it back to the school. Her attorney disputed that the footage clearly showed Park handing over a knife, arguing the bond was excessive for misdemeanors.
Back at Gompers, the community is shaken. When students returned, local leaders, parents, and officials held a “clap-in” as a show of support. Security has been bolstered: additional guards, stricter bag searches, and heightened vigilance have been implemented. Meanwhile, school leaders are under pressure to answer how a metal detector failed to stop the mother and how reoccurring bullying concerns may have escalated into violence.
This case has become a flashpoint. Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy remarked, “A lot of things went wrong on many levels and as a result a child was stabbed. It’s unacceptable. We can do so much better than this for our children.” As investigations continue, the people of Detroit are left demanding answers: How did school safety protocols fail so badly? Was this an isolated lapse or symptom of deeper neglect? And most of all—how do you protect students when the worst danger might come from someone sworn to guard them?
