Shooting at St. Louis High School Leaves Two Dead

One student and one teacher were killed yesterday in a St Louis magnet high school.  Seven others were hit and are in the hospital. There is some sameness to this story but also a couple of different issues.

Same

- AR-15

- 600 rounds of ammo

- current or former student (the latter)

- The teacher, Jean Kuczka, a health teacher, put herself between the gunman and students and was killed.

Different

- The shooter was killed. (School shooters tend to be taken into custody; this one died in a shootout with police)

- Most school shootings are in suburban or rural schools; this was an urban magnet high school

- The shooter left a note in his car which read in part:

“I Don’t have any friends I don’t have any family, I’ve never had a girlfriend, I’ve never had a social life, I’ve been an isolated loner my entire this. This was the perfect storm for a mass shooting.”

Sounds like textbook alienation. 

The school's doors were said to be all locked and there were seven security people in the building. Unfortunately, the shooter did not enter through a checkpoint. He did not hide his weapon when he did get in and students instantly tried to scatter.

The timeline was quite fast and the police were definitely on it:

9:11 a.m. a call came in to 911 about an active shooter.

9:15 St. Louis Metropolitan Police (SLMPD) arrived at the school.
9:23 SLMPD engaged with Harris.
9:25 Harris was shot.
9:32 Harris was secured by police.
9:52 CVPA building cleared.

Several officers were at a nearby church attending a funeral for a fellow cop which may have made the response faster.

In other school shooting news, the student who shot four classmates to death in Michigan nearly a year ago, is pleading guilty to four counts of first degree murder. The shooter had earlier indicated that he would plead not guilty by insanity.

His parents, who had been called to the school over his behavior right before the shooting but did not take him home, have been charged with manslaughter for their role in the shootings. They had bought the gun for their son even as they knew he had mental health issues. The shooter had given his father the money to buy the gun for him. The gun was not secured in the home.

From the AP:

A day earlier, a teacher had seen (the shooter) searching for ammunition on his phone. The school contacted (his mother), who told her son in a text message: “Lol. I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught,” the prosecutor’s office said.

“Put simply, they created an environment in which their son’s violent tendencies flourished. They were aware their son was troubled, and then they bought him a gun,” prosecutors said in a court filing.

A first-degree murder conviction typically brings an automatic life prison sentence in Michigan, but teenagers are entitled to a hearing where their lawyer can argue for a shorter term and an opportunity for parole.