The thing is, the kids may have had a gun, but most likely not. There aren't a whole lot of kids walking around with handguns or rifles or much else. A knife maybe? But they were coming home from school. There's a big risk of bringing weapons onto school property, and even kids understand that. Kids in groups just do stupid stuff (like try to steal dogs), because they give into peer pressure. It's pretty juvenile.

That said, I would've been carrying a handgun myself in that situation (I have a concealed weapons license). Expect the worst, hope for the best.