The Nation - News from Dec. 10, 1985

A gunman who took six people hostage in a Philadelphia high school and demanded that President Reagan resign and surrender leadership of the country to him was overpowered by three “very brave” captives who decided that his gun was not real, police said. The gun that the man had used during the 7 1/2-hour siege at Archbishop Ryan High School was a starter pistol loaded with blanks, said acting Police Commissioner Robert Armstrong. The three students, all 16 years old, subdued Steve Gold, in his 20s, in a scuffle, and he was taken to a hospital under police guard, where he will undergo psychiatric observation, the commissioner said. There were no injuries, although a “very emotionally upset” Gold appeared to be hyperventilating after the incident.