WTF? More Happened on the Day of the Garfield High School Murder?!

 In an incredibly shocking turn of events, it turns out that on the day of the Garfield High School murder that happened in June on the grounds of the school, a shooting incident had just happened shortly before that in a classroom.

From the Seattle Times story (who got this info from the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog):

A Garfield High School student allegedly fired rubber bullets from a realistic-looking rifle at his science teacher in a classroom in June, just minutes before a different shooter killed a student on the same Central District campus, according to Seattle police.

The Times' article says it was an "air rifle shooting" that happened 20 minutes before the murder outside.   

The teacher's story:

The teacher, who reported the attack the next day, told a police officer he thought the gun was real and feared for his life, according to a police report provided to The Seattle Times on Friday.

The next day, the teacher went to the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct, where he told an officer he was helping students prep for a science lab and that day’s lesson when a student came into his classroom and asked for help, the report says. The teacher told the student he would have to wait and the student yelled at him, then left.

Sometime later, the student returned, armed with what the teacher reported looked like a rifle and wearing a ski mask, according to the police report. The teacher reported that the student then fired rubber bullets at him continuously for 10 to 15 seconds, the report says.

The student left the classroom without saying anything and the teacher reported the encounter to school administrators, the police report says.

The student who did this was arrested and charged.

The Seattle City Attorney’s Office charged the student, Billy Dolmo, 18, with fourth-degree assault, a gross misdemeanor, on July 24, according to an office spokesperson. Dolmo, who is out of custody, will be arraigned sometime in the next month, the spokesperson said.

Naturally, between the two incidents, there was confusion throughout the campus. 

 

The Capitol Hill Seattle Blog reports that SPS says Dolmo "is no longer an SPS student." Don't know if that means expulsion. 

Calling the assault a “very frightening experience for those who witnessed it,” the district says the incident was “dealt with promptly and firmly by the school administrators.” 

Students and parents who have heard about the air rifle incident have only heard details from other students and rumors. School officials did not include details of the incident in messages sent to the campus about the June gun violence.

CHS has asked the district and SPD for more information about the response to the Garfield schoolroom incident, when police were called, and the status of the student involved.

CHS Blog has this statement from SPS:

On the day we tragically lost a Garfield student to gun violence at the school last spring, another unrelated incident involving an Airsoft pellet gun occurred in a classroom. This incident was dealt with promptly and firmly by the school administrators. These two incidents were not connected.

Seattle Public Schools (SPS) confirms that the student involved in the classroom incident is no longer an SPS student.

The classroom incident was a very frightening experience for those who witnessed it. SPS Safety and Security team is thoroughly reviewing the situation reports to ensure that all safety protocols were followed.

Safety is our top priority. For the upcoming school year, we are expanding gun violence prevention programs in high schools and increasing mental health support for all grades. Superintendent Jones has allocated over $2 million to enhance school building exteriors and campus security. We will have new procedures in place before the start of the school year. Among the measures we’re considering:

Increasing SPS security and neighborhood safety organization patrols around our buildings.

Wearing identification badges on campus.
Closing campuses for lunch.

It is imperative that everyone in the SPS community can work and learn in a safe environment, and we’re working hard to ensure that’s the case.

I cannot find this statement at the SPS website. 

Gotta say, I don't think the teacher in the classroom was the only one scared to death. 

The teacher did NOT call 911 for help the day of the incident.  I just can't imagine not doing that unless administrators had told teachers in non-injury incidents, wait for administrators. It's unclear if the teacher told administrators the next day that he was going to the police. 

There are only two male science teachers at GHS.

From the Times:

Detective Eric Muñoz, an SPD spokesperson, said Friday that had the teacher called 911 from the classroom, officers would have responded to the school.

“That’s a very serious incident. A kid with a rifle at school would’ve been a priority one [call],” he said, referencing the most serious calls officers respond to. “Even if it’s an airsoft rifle, it can cause panic and it can hurt you.”

There’s no telling whether the presence of police officers on campus would have altered the events that led to Paine-Murphy’s killing. But Muñoz said the classroom incident, due to its late reporting, ended up getting overshadowed by the police response to the deadly shooting and subsequent homicide investigation.

 From what I have seen and heard, the district has STILL not offered a safety plan for Seattle high schools and we are now