A Westlake High School student was robbed at gunpoint in the school’s parking lot Thursday [Feb. 27, 2014] afternoon, the school’s principal says. Principal John Carter says the student was not physically harmed. He says it happened at around 4:30 p.m. The student was approached by a man with a gun who took his cell phone and then fled the scene. The student immediately reported the incident to school officials, Carter says. The Travis County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident. Carter says as a precaution the school will have extra security staff in the parking lots on Friday.

Original story. (h/t Paul Martin)

But I thought guns weren’t allowed on school property. It’s a gun-free zone, right? Or does this mean that criminals don’t obey the law?

Westlake is the “rich folks” part of Austin. Crime never happens there, right? Well granted, it’s not I-35/Riverside (one of Austin’s crime hotspots), but folks — no where is immune. Not “the good parts of town”, not “in gun free zones”. This doesn’t mean everywhere is a battleground, just that you should not be lulled into thinking that there’s some impenetrable bubble around certain areas. Shit can happen, anywhere, to anyone.

Updated (2014-03-13): I work with folks who have kids that attend Westlake High School. The story is legit. Apparently some dude was combing the parking lot, breaking into cars. This student just happened to stumble upon dude, dude pulled a gun, demanded phone, bailed.

School just let out. Kids everywhere. And doing this? Yeah… just remember that if criminals had the same smarts, standards, and ethics as you, they wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing in the first place.