Warwick resident Gillian Jeffords pleaded not guilty to the felony charge at her arraignment in Clarkstown Justice Court, where an Order of Protection was also issued, barring her from the Jess Kaplan School of the BOCES campus in West Nyack, police said.
Jeffords was arrested on March 28, when officers were called to the school when the gun was discovered in her handbag, prompting a lockdown. It was determined by the school principal and the school resource officer that the gun was the property of Jeffords, who was serving as a teacher's aide at the school at the time.
BOCES has since fired Jeffords, who was licensed to carry a concealed firearm, police noted. At no point was this weapon displayed or used in a threatening manner by the teacher’s aide, Clarkstown Police Office Peter Walker said.
Jeffords is due back in court on July 30 to answer the charge against her.
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