KENNEWICK _ It took 12 minutes from the time a Kamiakin High School student reported a classmate had a gun at school for police to arrest the boy and secure the gun.

The gun turned out to be a plastic Airsoft pistol, said Kennewick police Sgt. Ken Lattin.

Airsoft weapons shoot plastic pellets using compressed air or a spring mechanism.

"We just do what we train for and handled it before it started," Kennewick police Capt. Scott Child told the Herald. "There's nothing higher priority."

School security personnel received a tip about the 14-year-old with a gun at 11:28 a.m. Monday. The school resource officer was alerted, and within minutes, about a half-dozen Kennewick officers were on campus, Lattin said.

Officers went into the classroom with guns drawn and the student initially tried to toss aside the Airsoft gun, but he quickly was taken into custody, Lattin said.

The gun was not part of a Halloween costume.

"This is yet another great example of staff and students doing the right thing by reporting suspicious and potentially dangerous information immediately to authorities," Lattin said.

The school temporarily was locked down during the 12-minute incident.

"It happened very fast," said district spokeswoman Lorraine Cooper.

After the teen was taken to the Kennewick police station, officers and counselor went into the classroom to check on the startled students.

Some students were taken to see a school psychologist, Cooper said.

The student will face disciplinary measures, as even look-alike guns are prohibited on school grounds, Cooper said.

He also was booked into the juvenile detention center for displaying a weapon on school campus, a gross misdemeanor, Lattin said.

-- Reporter Jacques Von Lunen contributed to this report.

Pasco man arrested after police chase

A 57-year-old Pasco man was arrested early Monday after leading police on a slow-speed chase in a stolen car in downtown Pasco, officials said.

Two patrol cars sustained minor damage during the chase, Pasco police Capt. Jim Raymond told the Herald.

The incident began when officers tried to stop the green Taurus around 2 a.m. near Third Avenue and Park Street for a possible DUI investigation, Raymond said.

The passenger jumped out of the car and took off running, then the driver, later identified as Christopher John Quandt, drove away.

Near Fourth Avenue and A Street, an officer attempted to strategically hit the car to cause Quandt to stop, Raymond said.

Quandt, however, then tried to drive between two cruisers that had blocked him in, causing damage to a second car.

The officer inside the car that Quandt hit suffered a minor head injury from the impact, Raymond said.

Quandt was booked into the Franklin County jail on suspicion of possessing a stolen vehicle, attempting to elude police and vehicular assault.

500 pounds of unused, expired drugs turned in

Almost 500 pounds of unused or expired drugs were dropped off at the Kennewick police station Saturday during the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day event.

The Drug Enforcement Administration collected 495 pounds of prescription drugs in Kennewick, said Mike Blatman, Kennewick police crime prevention specialist.

West Richland police received 71 pounds of drugs that officers turned over to the DEA, and Walla Walla police collected 60 pounds.

Kennewick and Walla Walla police departments also held a Shred Day with Take Back Day and officials said both events were successful.

Tri-Cities Crime Stoppers collected $715 in donations from people dropping off items to be shredded at the Kennewick police station, Blatman said.

West Richland Police Chief Brian McElroy said his department recently got approval from the DEA to have a prescription drop box at the station.

That means West Richland residents now can drop off unneeded prescription medications in their bottles at the station during regular business hours.

Illegal drugs won't be accepted.

Police will either incinerate the drugs through their normal evidence disposal process or turn them over to the DEA during Take Back Day events, McElroy said.

Police looking for stolen vehicle used in assault

Kennewick police and Tri-Cities Crime Stoppers are looking for a stolen vehicle suspected of being used to run down a 15-year-old boy Saturday.

The car is a cream 1984 Chevy Caprice Classic, with Washington plates 266UXL. It has four doors, mismatched wheels and one small tire -- similar in size to a spare tire.

Officers say the stolen car was used in a vehicular assault that left the Pasco teen with a broken leg and head injury that required several staples.

The car was stolen from the area of Fifth Avenue and Gum Street.

The incident occurred around 3:15 p.m. at Eighth Avenue and Fir Street. The victim was walking with a friend, also 15 from Pasco, when they were confronted by multiple men in the stolen car, police said.

The suspects are believed to be gang members. One suspect is said to have a tattoo on the left side of his neck.

The two victims are not suspected to have gang affiliations. Police say the suspects may have thought the teens were rival gang members based on the color of clothes they were wearing.

One suspect got out of the car armed with a bat and reportedly chased one boy into an irrigation canal, police said.

The driver then accelerated and hit the other boy with the right front portion of the car. The victim was treated at Kennewick General Hospital.

Anyone with information about the stolen car or suspects is asked to call Tri-Cities Crime Stoppers at 586-8477 or visit www.tricitiescrimestoppers.org. Tips can also be sent by text message by writing "Text TIP 411" plus the message to CRIMES (274637).

Crime Stoppers pays a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information that results in a felony arrest. All calls are confidential.

Milton-Freewater man injured in ATV accident

Oregon State Police are continuing to investigate an ATV crash in rural Umatilla County that sent a Milton-Freewater man to the hospital.

Eric J. Roden, 41, was taken by friends to Grande Ronde Hospital, then flown to Legacy Emanual Medical Center in Portland, where he was in serious condition, said Lt. Gregg Hastings.

Troopers learned of the ATV crash on a forest service road Saturday night while at the hospital on an unrelated incident, Hastings said.

The crash reportedly occurred at the junction of two Forest Service roads near the Umatilla County-Union County line.

Roden was hurt when his 2005 Suzuki 700 ATV rolled over, Hastings said.

Alcohol is suspected of being a contributing factor in the wreck, he said.

Kennewick police arrest teen for car prowling

A 14-year-old Kennewick boy was arrested late Sunday for allegedly stealing a stereo out of a car.

Kennewick police received an anonymous call just before midnight about two boys breaking into a car in the 600 block of South Fir Street, said Officer Aaron Hamel.

The two teens were seen in the area carrying backpacks and when Hamel tried to stop them, one took off running.

The 14-year-old, who didn't run, was arrested on suspicion of vehicle prowling. The other teen was not found.

Kennewick police still are investigating and asking anyone who discovered items were stolen from their car Sunday night to call police.

-- Paula Horton: 509-582-1556; phorton@tricityherald.com