WAUKESHA, WI — Day after day, the same Waukesha North High School student started his trip to school at the Fleetfoot Drive bus stop across from Kwik Trip.

He'd carry his books, a school bag, and in many cases, the rifle he used as a member of the school's marching band. Typically, this student's marching band rifle isn't the kind of thing you'd confuse for the kind hunters use during deer hunting season.

This student's rifle was a wood cutout, painted white and wrapped in white tape. It was a tool used in a field show, and precisely balanced to be twirled aloft, and caught in the palms of a color guard member's hands — without moving a muscle to catch it. That's a considerable skill that takes years of knuckle-breaking practice to master. On the morning of Thursday, Sept. 22, on a clear day, at the bus stop, this student thought he'd get in just a little more practice.

Color guard rifles in action in July 2016 in a drum corps competition in Lisle, Illinois. Photo credit: @drumcorpsfan At 6:06 a.m. a concerned citizen driving on their way to work called police, informing authorities that a male subject wearing blue jeans and a plaid shirt was "twirling" a rifle and playing with it.

The call came in as a "Man With a Gun," and Waukesha police responded to this call as they would in any situation — sincerely, and under oath to protect the lives of the people they serve.

Three squads were dispatched to the area, and traffic was shut down on Fleetfoot from Kwik Trip to Racine Avenue.

During their investigations, officers spoke with Kwik Trip employees, who reported there was an older male with a "parade style" rifle on the corner. He was described as "not threatening and looking like he might have been practicing." According to the report, he boarded the bus.

At 6:36 a.m. the call "command terminated" came over dispatch, indicating the scene was secure. At 6:38 a.m. police made contact with the student at the transit center at 212 E. St. Paul Ave. A police call indicating, "It is a gun case, he is not threatening," came over dispatch.