FAIRFIELD -- Three young students at Good Will-Hinckley residential school on U.S. Route 201 were arrested Thursday morning after one of them allegedly jumped on a police officer's back and threatened to take his gun and shoot him, police said.

"The boy that was on his back is 11," Fairfield Deputy Police Chief Steve Trahan said later in the day Thursday. "It was dangerous as soon as the boy was trying to take (the officer's) gun from his holster. It's difficult, especially when you've got two people you are trying to deal with who are kicking and biting you, and you've got a third one on your back.

"The girls were kicking, hitting, biting."

The boy and two girls, ages 12 and 13, were taken to the police station for processing and released to the custody of the school, Trahan said. They are charged as juveniles with assault on a police officer and obstructing government administration.

One of them is charged with theft.

A second boy, age 15, was not charged.

Trahan said the ordeal began at around 9 a.m. Thursday when a caller reported a disabled motor vehicle near the residential school in Hinckley, a village of Fairfield, on U.S. Route 201, the Waterville-Skowhegan road.

Officer William Beaulieu was sent to investigate.

Trahan said the vehicle turned out to be a Good Will-Hinckley van that was driven slowly by a school staff member, following the four young people along the side of the road.

"Bill spoke with a staff member and the staff member said that one of the juveniles had stolen some beer from the (Hinckley) general store and threw it in a snowbank," Trahan said. "Bill got out of his vehicle to talk with the juveniles. They tried to go around him, so he grabbed the coats of the two girls and tried to pull them back toward the van.

"One of the girls started to hit him and the boy made some threats about taking his gun and shooting him."

Trahan said as Beaulieu was struggling with the girls, the 11-year-old boy jumped on his back.

"The boy did reach for his firearm," he said. "He pushed them all away, off of him, and he called for backup."

Trahan said he and Police Chief John Emery responded to the scene, as did Fairfield Detective Sgt. Kingston Paul, Officer Christopher Parker, Maine State Police Trooper Derrick Record and Clinton Police Chief Charles Runnels.

Trahan said the juveniles ran off, up some nearby railroad tracks before being taken into custody.

Contacted Thursday afternoon, Neil Colan, chief executive officer at Good Will-Hinckley, said incidents such as the one described by Fairfield police are uncommon at the school and campus homes for boys and girls.

"We work very hard to meet the needs of very challenging adolescents who have substantial struggles," Colan said. "We appreciate the close cooperation with the local police and we are working with the parents of these children to address the situation that occurred.

"This is not the types of behaviors, obviously, we want to see at Good Will-Hinckley and we are taking appropriate and strong steps to ensure such behaviors won't occur again."

Colan said school officials also have met with the owners of Hinckley General Store to express their regret.

"We appreciate the support and cooperation from the community," he said. "This is not a common occurrence of students at Good Will-Hinckley."

Doug Harlow -- 474-9534, ext. 342

dharlow@centralmaine.com