Concerned parents of students that attend Stuarts Draft Middle School want answers regarding why the school wasn't put on lockdown during an incident involving a gun.

School officials knew about it before classes began, yet a letter was sent home to parents after the school day was over. Friday night, outraged parents are coming forward saying the school should have been locked-down.

Becki Allen read the letter earlier in disbelief, "Why am I receiving it on a letter and my daughter is bringing it to me? Why didn't I get notification from the school myself? Why didn't I get a phone call?"

According to Superintendent Dr. Gary McQuain, an eighth grader may have been selling a small caliber gun to another eighth grader. The letter confirms that the weapon was on campus Thursday.

"They should have put them on lockdown. Period, no questions asked," says Allen.

McQuain says, "We immediately talk to the students involved and try to find out if there was anything to the allegation, and you take everything extremely serious to determine if it was a credible threat."

According to the letter, a school lockdown drill was not required, but concerned parents say the school's protocol during times like these needs to be changed.

Allen says, "It can happen, just because this is Stuarts Draft Middle School and we're in this small, rural area doesn't mean we're exempt."

Dr. McQuain says, "If it's a credible threat, you sometimes lock-down a school, especially if you find something, we did not find something this morning, so we did not lock the school down."

He says the Augusta County Sheriff's Office agreed with the decision because there wasn't a gun on campus Friday. Allen believes the school wanted to sweep a major safety issue under the rug.

McQuain says, "We have taken every precaution once we found that something may have been at the school. We involved law enforcement, and charges have been filed. We will take it through the full legal process to make sure that our schools remain safe."

McQuain says the fact that a student came forward to a teacher about the incident Thursday is outstanding. Meanwhile, the Augusta County Sheriff's Office is continuing their investigation and the two eighth grade students have been suspended indefinitely.