A 15-year-old student is in “extremely critical” condition after he was shot by another 15-year-old boy in a “targeted” attack at an Arkansas junior high school Monday morning; police said.
Police reported that the teen had died from his wounds — but later rescinded that; saying “bad information was released,” the station said.
The teen was listed in critical condition Tuesday.
The shooting happened about 9:59 a.m. CST in a hallway outside the main office at Watson Chapel Junior High, police said.
“This was not random. It was targeted,” DeFoor said.
The motive was under investigation.
Gunfire erupted during a between-class break so other students were in the vicinity.
“So how many students were actually in the hallway we do not know at this time,” Chief Kelvin Sergeant told reporters. “But there were other individuals present, as they were transferring from one class to another.”
The shooter, a 15-year-old male who is also a student at Watson Chapel Junior High, fled but was tracked by dogs about a half-hour after the shooting, DeFoor said. The boy, who was still armed, surrendered without incident.
No additional details were available about the youngster in custody, but the chief said charges are pending.
“There has been a shooting at the Watson Chapel Junior High,” the school district said on Facebook. “ALL campuses are on lockdown. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department and Pine Bluff Police Department are on-site to control the situation.”
“This was an isolated incident and all students are safe at this time,” the district said. “The parent of the student hurt has been notified so if you have not been notified by the school your student is safe and secure.”
Monday was the first day of a return to in-person instruction for the school in Pine Bluff, a city of about 43,000 people. The district had been conducting online learning after a week of subfreezing temperatures and two snowstorms that caused leaks and line breaks from a lack of water pressure.
Chief Sergeant said that he was not sure whether classes would resume on Tuesday but that if so; additional officers would be on the scene, as well as a chaplain who would be available to provide grief counseling