A transgender teacher in Florida has been removed from the classroom in the Hernando School District (HSD) and law enforcement officials have seized the individual’s firearms after they allegedly made a comment about wanting to shoot students.

WEAR ABC 3 reported that the teacher, who uses “she/her” pronouns, had recently learned of a social media post in which their “sexual orientation was being discussed negatively.”

The teacher was sent to the school guidance counselor’s office on March 24 after reportedly claiming to be having “bad thoughts.”

The teacher allegedly made “concerning comments about self-harm” and said they were having “suicidal thoughts” and that they owned firearms and “wanted to shoot some students due to them not performing to their ability.”

Officials have not released the name of the teacher.

The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) quickly responded to the incident by removing three firearms and ammunition from the teacher’s home that same day.

The Florida Department of Education released a statement Friday indicating that the teacher has been removed from the classroom.

“Earlier this week, the Department was informed of a situation regarding student safety at a school in Hernando County,” the statement said. “Upon the Department bringing the concern to the Superintendent Wednesday evening, only then did the district remove the teacher from the school, effective yesterday, Thursday, April 13. Therefore, the teacher is no longer at the school.”

Please see the Florida Department of Education’s statement below on a school safety situation in Hernando County. pic.twitter.com/gBwNpcf4H6

— Florida Department of Education (@EducationFL) April 14, 2023

Parents have accused the school district of withholding information from them due to alleged discrepancies in what allegedly happened.

The school district said in a letter to parents on Thursday that the investigation from the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office revealed details “not previously known by the school district” that “appear to conflict with information gathered at the time of the incident.”

“In light of this additional information, the school district will continue to investigate the incident and require further involvement by mental health experts,” the letter said. “As part of our investigation, we will take a hard look at all the actions that were taken on that day, and in the days following the incident, and determine if any steps were missed.”

The school district said that the conclusions from the pending investigation may lead “to consideration of additional safeguards.”

A small number of parents said at last week’s school board meeting that they thought the teacher was being targeted because they were transgender, but “the majority of parents” did not agree with that sentiment, according to local media.

“Doesn’t matter whether they’re white, black, purple, green or a rhinoceros,” one father said. “I’m glad she’s a great teacher. She made a threat.”

Another parent responded, “Anybody that makes a comment like that should not be working in a school. If a student made that comment there would be charges pressed. The child would be expelled.”

The wife of Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia may have violated an ethics pledge she made before taking her spot heading a federal economic development board, according to Fox News.

Gayle Manchin aided an Appalachia-focused nonprofit in applying for and receiving $62.8 million in federal grant money, some of which was later dispersed to an organization led by Jack Rossi, Sen. Manchin’s longtime campaign treasurer. Gayle heads a federal board that oversees Appalachia development, and her consulting on the grant process may be a violation of an ethics pledge she made before joining the board, according to Fox News.

Gayle, the co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), advised the nonprofit group Coalfield Development on how to apply for federal grant money offered as part of the American Rescue Plan, emails reviewed by Fox suggest. Coalfield Development was one of 21 groups that competed for $100 million in grant money through the American Rescue Plan.

Coalfield Development CEO Brandon Dennison sent Gayle an email on October 19, 2021, that referenced his grant application and a phone call that Dennison and Gayle had apparently shared, describing it as “complementary and supportive of the ARC-initiated effort.” Dennison added that, despite the “highly competitive” application process, he was “looking forward to continued collaboration” with ARC.

Coalfield Development’s application earned the organization $62.8 million in federal grant money, $13 million of which was dispersed to the Charleston Area Alliance, on whose board of directors Rossi sits as chair.

Before Gayle joined ARC as co-chair, she signed an ethics pledge vowing “to avoid any actual or apparent conflict of interest” including “in any particular matter in which I know that I have a financial interest directly and predictably affected by the matter, or in which I know that a person whose interests are imputed to me has a financial interest directly and predictably affected by the particular matter.”

ARC denied any foul play in the rewarding of the grant money or any assertion that Gayle may have acted in violation of the pledge. “Federal Co-Chair Manchin does not have any financial interest in Coalfield Development, nor in the ACT Now Coalition,” a climate investment fund run by Coalfield Development, ARC said in a statement.

ARC said that Gayle “encouraged organizations in Appalachia to apply” for the grant money, but had “no role in approving any EDA Build Back Better applications.”

Coalfield Development accused Fox News of reporting “multiple inaccuracies” regarding Gayle’s involvement in the grant process. A Daily Wire request for further details on the inaccuracies was not answered by press time.

Gayle joined ARC on President Joe Biden’s recommendation in April 2021, roughly three months into Biden’s first term in office. Sen. Manchin is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He is a moderate Democrat and key swing vote in the closely divided Senate.

The Manchins have courted controversy about their finances before. Sen. Manchin made a fortune selling coal “gob,” typically a mining waste product, to a West Virginia power plant. Manchin, when he was serving as a state senator, helped the plant’s developers through application and regulatory processes, and his coal company has been in business with the plant for about two decades.