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Buffalo Common Council member not allowed to attend son's graduation after BOE ruling

Posted at 11:44 PM, Jun 19, 2019
and last updated 2019-06-20 17:52:55-04

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A Buffalo Common Council member will not be allowed to go to his son's graduation after bringing a gun into a city high school.

The Buffalo Board of Education has now banned Councilman Ulysses Wingo from public school grounds for 18 months, without exception.

The resolution to suspend Wingo from schools in the district was approved unanimously by the Buffalo Public School Board on Tuesday.

In a statement, the teachers union said, “We know it is difficult to prevent someone from attending their own or a relative’s graduation; however, students who bring a weapon into a school are suspended for a year. And students and relatives have been prevented from attending graduation for far less offenses than committing the crime of bringing a loaded weapon onto school property."

Wingo says brought the gun to Riverside Institute of Technology by mistake and gave it to the principal as soon as he realized he had it on him. He has since stepped down from the Common Council's Education Committee.

According to a spokesperson for the district, Jerome Piwko has resigned from his position as principal of Riverside after his involvement in the incident.