BATON ROUGE - A high school student is facing charges after authorities say he brought a gun to school.

According to the arrest report, Anthony James Jelks Jr. brought the weapon to Broadmoor High School. Authorities were called to the school after an employee searched Jelks and discovered the gun.

Jelks said he brought the gun to school for protection. The boy said, one of his family members had been recently shot and he worried about his own safety. Documents say Jelks found the gun in a grassy area between Washington Avenue and Bahm Street last week.

Deputies say the .25 caliber handgun was loaded with seven rounds and wasn't reported stolen. Jelks said he'd been carrying the gun to school since Monday.

Jelks was arrested Wednesday and charged with carrying a firearm/dangerous weapon on school property as well as having a weapon in a firearm-free zone.

EBR School System released the following statement Thursday afternoon:

"The East Baton Rouge Parish School System was notified that a Broadmoor High School student was found in possession of a weapon on school property. The weapon was found during a random search by school administrators and the on-campus School Resource Officer, who immediately took action and confiscated the weapon. The student will be disciplined in accordance with the Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook. Please help us educate your children about the dangers and severe consequences of bringing any type of weapon on school grounds. All such incidents are taken extremely seriously. The safety of our students and faculty remains our top priority."