I was in my Senior year at Havre High School in 1962. Mr. Stenson was my Psychology teacher. He did his level best to make this boring subject relevant. Occasionally he even succeeded.
Most of us were already in our seats when the bell rang. I pulled out my trusty notebook and prepared to write. I needed at least a “B” in the class to stay on the Honor Roll. Stenson stood patiently behind his desk waiting to call the class to order.
A minute into the class, a kid named Bob came in slamming the door behind him. He slammed a satchel on an empty desk in the rear and began rummaging through it.
“You’re late Bob.” said Mr. Stenson sounding slightly annoyed.
“I know, and I hate you and this whole darn school!” Bob retorted, pulling something from his satchel. My God, it was a gun!
Before most of us knew what was happening, Bob’s pistol blazed away. Stenson ducked for cover behind his desk, dodging as Bob’s pistol tracked him. We were all aghast, frozen in our seats. I remember thinking this can’t be happening. Bob was one of those nice, attentive kids that loved to do favors for teachers. Hell, he didn’t even cuss as he opened fire.
Seconds later the empty pistol fell silent. Mr. Stenson lifted himself up from behind the desk. Her seemed unruffled. Most of us were astonished he hadn’t been hit.
Bob put the gun back in his satchel and took his usual seat. People started to breathe again. Clearly this had been a stunt, and the bullets were blanks.
Mr. Stenson, who never seemed to lose his composure, adjusted his suit jacket and told us to take out a sheet of paper.
“I want you to describe what you just saw as accurately and completely as you can. Be sure to include the number of shots you heard.”
We settled down to write. A few minutes later Mr. Stenson started asking us to read our accounts. They differed considerably and only one student got the number of shots fired correct. The remainder of the hour was spent discussing how individual perceptions can vary.
In the intervening 57 years, I have never heard any of my classmates speak of this incident. I don’t even think I told my parents. Perhaps we wanted to keep the surprise fresh for the next class. I recently re-connected with some old classmates on Facebook. None of them were in this particular class and none of them had ever heard of the incident. A friend from the following year’s class did recall that he had been the protagonist in a similar stunt in Stenson’s class that didn’t involve a gun. Perhaps Stenson had gotten some blowback that kept him from ever repeating the stunt.
I’m not about “what ifs”, but lately I have been wondering what would happen if Bob and Mr. Stenson had pulled this stunt in today’s world. The outcome would have been radically different.
As Bob began firing, a dozen students would have pulled out their phones. Some would be recording it while others frantically dialed 911 or loved ones. A wrestler and a Blue Pony lineman would have flattened Bob and attempted to disable his gun arm.
Within minutes Officer Hofdahl of Havre PD would have come running into the room with his weapon drawn. Whether Bob lived or died at that point would depend as much on the color of his skin as it did on the threat he posed.
Both of the perpetrators would have been arrested. They would appear the next morning before Justice Stalcup. Bob would be released to his parents and Stenson would have to post a large bond. The school board would act quickly to suspend Bob and fire Stenson. The State Board would soon permanently revoke Mr. Stinson’s teaching credentials. He would be sentenced to a year or so in Deer Lodge Prison. After being released early for good behavior Stensen would start a new career as a writer.
All of the major networks would cover the story.
Half of the class would subsequently sue the school district for the PTSD that the incident caused them. Most would settle out of court for an undisclosed amount.
None of us who witnessed this long-ago event would ever want to re-live it. Instead, we read about Columbine, Sandy Hook, Parkland and we weep.
LDT Aug ‘19
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