Alfred J. Purcell III, 57, of Woodstock, Conn., is facing multiple charges, including two counts of unlawful possession of ammunition, two counts of carrying ammunition on school grounds, and disorderly conduct, Southbridge police said in a statement.

A high school teacher in Southbridge is facing charges after he allegedly placed a live round of ammunition in a school stairwell Thursday morning to prove a point that the school should have metal detectors, police said.

“To have someone who I’ve hired to ensure a safe environment for our children to do something like this is abhorrent and absolutely shocking,” Southbridge School Superintendent-Receiver Jeffrey Villar said at a news conference Thursday afternoon.


Southbridge High School was put on lockdown for about an hour after Purcell, who was a science teacher at the school, reported around 8:12 a.m. Thursday that there was a single live round of 9mm ammunition in a school stairwell, police said.

Police said they investigated the incident, which included looking at security footage, and saw Purcell pull the ammunition out of his pocket and place it on the floor.

“Mr. Purcell quickly left the area and around 10 minutes later, returned to the area, at which point we observed on videotape him stand over the ammunition for a few minutes, take a picture of it with what I believe was his cellphone, and then he got onto a school-issued radio and reported that he found a live round of ammunition on the floor,” Southbridge Police Chief Shane Woodson said during the news conference.

Officers arrested Purcell and took him to Southbridge police headquarters, where he was booked, Woodson said. Purcell told officers he did it to “prove to the school that they need to get metal detectors,” police said.

During the interaction, police said the scent of alcohol was present on Purcell’s breath, but he denied drinking any alcohol.


Woodson said he believes that Purcell placed the ammunition on the ground following an incident that occurred at the school Tuesday, when seven rounds of used .223-caliber ammunition was found in a stairwell at the school. A juvenile later told authorities they found the ammunition on the grounds of a former firing range in the community.

“I believe Mr. Purcell today, this is the reason for his actions,” Woodson said. “He didn’t think that we dealt with that incident in the proper fashion.”

Police later found 102 live rounds of 20-gauge shotgun ammunition in the trunk of Purcell’s car, Woodson said. Purcell has a license to carry in Connecticut but not one in Massachusetts, Woodson said.

Purcell was hired in August and passed a background check, Villar said. Purcell had to be disciplined during the school year for failure to establish a safe classroom environment. “Classroom management was an issue,” Villar said.

Prior to the incident, Purcell’s teaching contract was already not going to be renewed, Villar said.

Purcell formerly taught at the Woodstock Academy in Woodstock and Putnam Science Academy in Putnam, Conn., Villar said. Requests for comment from the schools were not immediately returned.

As for Purcell’s fate for the rest of the school year, Villar said Purcell is going through the legal process and is “barred” from the school’s campus.

“I intend to do everything I can to ensure that the Southbridge Public Schools responds appropriately and that we make sure our children can come to school, trust the adults that work with them, and trust that they’re safe,” Villar said.


Purcell was arraigned in Dudley District Court Thursday afternoon, where a not-guilty plea was entered on his behalf and bail was set at $500, according to the Worcester district attorney’s office. He was ordered to stay 500 yards away from the school. He is set to next appear in court on June 24.

Breanne Kovatch can be reached at breanne.kovatch@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter at @breannekovatch.