Violence in Our Schools

August 1, 2001 through July 31, 2002

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To report a threat of school violence before the instigator has a chance to act on his/her intentions, please contact Speak Up at 1-866-SPEAKUP (that is 1-866-773-2587)

I would like to thank all of the Survivors and others who have contacted me with information about school violence.  I really do appreciate the help, for without their help, several of these occurrences would not be here.

One other thing I would like to ask of those who read over this list of tragedies is this: If you can provide me with any more details of any of these incidents, I would greatly appreciate the information. Or, if you know of another violent act at a school that is not on this list, please forward that information to me as well.  The link to my e-mail is above.

A High School in Nashville, Tennessee

Thursday, August 16, 2001

After an altercation in the school parking lot, a 17-year-old male student spent a week in neurological intensive care unit at a local hospital.  During the altercation, the teen received facial cuts and bruises on his head.  Another student told the school's resource officer about the altercation and the officer was able to aid the wounded boy into the school for treatment until the paramedics arrived.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

An Elementary School in Los Angeles, California

Monday, August 20, 2001

As two kindergarten teachers prepared for the first day of school, a 19-year-old male burst into their room, raped and robbed them both.  Students were not in the room at the time of this attack. He was arrested two days later.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in New Orleans, Louisiana

Monday, August 20, 2001

Halfway across the country another assault against teachers took this place.  This time, a 17-year-old female student was being escorted to the back of lunch line when she slapped the teacher.  Policed arrested the teen for her actions.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Greensboro, North Carolina

Friday, August 24, 2001

Attacks against teachers continued almost two weeks later when two middle school students were fighting outside a 42-year-old male English teacher's classroom.  The teacher tried to break up the fight and ended up with his leg broken in two different places.  The students, 15 and 16, were charged for an assault on a school official and for fighting.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

 A High School in Greensboro, North Carolina

Monday, August 27, 2001

The next school day, the fourth consecutive teacher attack, and the second in Greensboro school district, took place.  Two girls were fighting this morning around 7:45 a.m. outside the school's main entrance.  One teacher was already trying to break up the fight when a 24-year-old female student leant her support.  She was hit in the face by one of the teens, ages 14 and 16.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Sarasota, Florida

Tuesday, August 28, 2001

Two teachers tried to take away a 17-year-old male student's cell phone today.  Cell phones are prohibited at the school.  The teen pushed the two teachers and ran out to his car.  He was chased by a school security guard.  The teen got into his car and started ramming the security guard with it until a private investigator, who was witnessing the attack, pulled out his fire arm and aimed it at the boy.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Palm Beach, Florida

Thursday, August 30, 2001

Using a box cutter, a 16-year-old ninth-grader slashed a classmate in the abdomen, also 16, during a fight in the school's courtyard about 10 minutes before classes were to let out for the day.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in San Jose, California

Tuesday, September 4, 2001

In a gang-related fight involving six males, two 18-year-old male students were stabbed in the stomach in the school's parking lot as the school day ended.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Gaffney, South Carolina

Thursday, September 6, 2001

Outside of a classroom at the school, two students, one 17 and the other 18, waited for a 15-year-old to leave class so that they could fight over a girl.  The two jumped the younger teen and cut his head several times with a knife.  Two teachers tried to break up the fight, which last around 10 minutes, and received minor wounds for their efforts.  Two other students were wounded in this attack.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Roosevelt High School, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Monday, September 10, 2001

One day before terrorist attacked America, school violence rolled on as normal, this time at football practice.  A fight started around 6:30 p.m. between a Somali student and a former African-American student.  The fight continued between the two for several minutes, with the former student gaining the upper hand.  Then three Somali students jumped in to help their classmate.  When the odds changed, several other African-American and white students joined the fight as well.  Coaches then began to try and break up the fight.  One of them, a 45-year-old man, was stabbed in the back.  A 14-year-old football player was stabbed in the chest.  Both were taken to Hennepin County Medical Center for treatment.  Due to budget cuts, teachers and coaches had to take over security duties from security guards from previous years.

Source: Minneapolis Star-Tribune - Two Stabbed During Fight Outside Roosevelt High

For a more in depth story about interracial relations in Minneapolis, check out this essay from Meleah Maynard.

An Elementary School in Convington, Kentucky

Thursday, September 13, 2001

With the nation still in shock from the events of September 11, 2001, 30-year-old Marjorie M. McElfresh tried to gun down 26-year-old Linda Gegner for an unknown reason.  Marjorie opened fire around 3 p.m. in front of the elementary school, shooting Linda in the neck. Marjorie was charged with attempted murder while Linda was in critical condition at the hospital at the time of this report.

Manual High School, Denver, Colorado

Wednesday, September 19, 2001

During a fight in the school's parking lot between two 15-year-olds, one of the boys was injured when the other pulled out a screwdriver and hit him with it.  The wounds and cuts were minor, but the event, unfortunately, still counts as an act of school violence. 

Source: Denver Post - Youth, 15, Sought in Stabbing of Teen

Lake Clifton Eastern High School, Baltimore, Maryland

Thursday, September 20, 2001

After being off campus without permission, 11th grader Lawrence Grant, 17, returned to school around 1 p.m.  He should have stayed off campus.  At a back doorway of the school Lawrence was grabbed by the collar and shot in the stomach.  He ran off and was hit again by a bullet in the right buttocks. By the end of the day, police had arrested a 16-year-old boy for this act of school violence.  Just eight months ago, Juan Matthews was killed at Lake Clifton by Gerald A. Lane.

Source: Baltimore Sun - Youth Shot Outside School

Cheyenne High School, North Las Vegas, Nevada

Monday, September 24, 2001

A 16-year-old boy was stabbed by a man in his early twenties today as the boy talking with his friends at his school.  Police believe the man approached the boy and stabbed him in the stomach, with the boy possibly knowing his attacker.

A Middle School in Memphis, Tennessee

Tuesday, September 25, 2001

The next day, a 12-year-old male student was stabbed in the chest with a pencil by a 14-year-old female classmate.  The female stabbed the boy after the boy fought with her cousin.  The wounded boy was in serious condition from the stabbing.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Boston, Massachusetts

Wednesday, September 26, 2001

The third act of school violence this week came from New England.  A 14-year-old female student let an 18-year-old male student onto the campus.  The male was carrying a knife in the sleeve of his jacket and pulled a bandana around his face.  School police officers encountered the teen and a fight ensued.  One of the officers was cut on the hand as they disarmed the teen instigator.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Chattanooga, Tennessee

Wednesday, September 26, 2001

Also today, the fourth violent act in three days, a teacher, 41 was attacked by her husband, 47, in front of her students.  The husband walked into the classroom and repeatedly struck his wife with a claw hammer in the head and hands.  Students rushed for help, however the school's resource officer was in court today.  The husband was pulled from the attack by others.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Lexington, Kentucky

Friday, September 28, 2001

Two days later, a 15-year-old male student stabbed a classmate, 15, just outside the school doors.  The classmate was in serious but stable condition by the end of the day.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Southwest Charter (High) School, Kansas City, Missouri

Thursday, October 4, 2001

While four others created a disturbance, four students assaulted an off-duty police officer that was working at the school.  All eight were arrested.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Taylorsville High School, Taylorsville, Utah

Friday, October 12, 2001

17-year-old Ed "Rusty" Riddle commits suicide in a school hallway with a handgun today.

Source: National School Safety Center's Report on School Associated Violent Deaths

A High School in Goshen, Indiana

Friday, October 12, 2001

Also today, a female teacher was assaulted by two males, both 18.  One of the males wrapped his fist around the head of a hammer and struck the teacher in the head.  She received two skull fractures, a crushed eye cavity and a crushed sinus cavity.  The two boys were trying to steal her car.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

An Elementary School in Vineland, New Jersey

Thursday, October 18, 2001

In a case of very young instigators, a 6-year-old and a 7-year-old had a verbal fight today.  The younger of the two threw a kitchen knife at the 7-year-old as the fight concluded.  The older student was injured.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland

Friday, October 19, 2001

The next day, another fight broke out inside a school injuring yet another student.  A fight at 10:30 a.m. this morning ended when a 16-year-old was stabbed several times in the chest.  The teen was in critical condition by the time the report was published.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Petersburg, Virginia

Tuesday, October 23, 2001

A female teacher was assaulted by one of her students, 15, after he refused to remove his headphones and turn off his CD player.  He stabbed her with a pocket knife several times and was arrested.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Vaestermalms High School, Sundsvall, Sweden

Thursday, October 25, 2001

Wanting vengeance for years of being isolated and disliked, 19-year-old former student form the Ukraine Rafael Argueta Villacorta returned to his school with the intent of stabbing someone from his former class.  He was armed with two knives.  He waited in the school's lobby for his victim, but the classmate didn't not appear.  Around 11 a.m. Rafael decided to go to the art class where he knew his former classmates would be.  Eight unsupervised students were working on their sculptures when he arrived.  He walked over to the windows and suddenly attacked Frida Norgren with stabs to her back.  Frida turned toward Rafael, but he kept stabbing until she collapsed to the floor.  Classmate Kristofer Stenskog grabbed Rafael's arm, but he quickly moved the knife to his other hand and began stabbing Kristofer in the chest and abdomen.  Rafael then fled the school and threw the knife away in a nearby cemetery.  Frida and Kristofer were rushed to a nearby hospital, but Frida's injuries were too severe to keep her alive.  Kristofer underwent surgery for chest and stomach injuries and recovered. Rafael turned himself in on Friday, stating he was remorseful for what he had done, and that he didn't mean to kill his former classmate, only to harm her.  The name of the attacker was not released.  However, a visitor to this site sent me an email in late 2012 with Rafael's name.  Sundsvall is 220 miles (381 kilometers) north of Stockholm.

THE ONE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Webmaster's Note: Although I don't have an official source for this act of school violence, the visitor who provided me Rafael's name, also provide me two links to Swedish forums. Each of these forums have background information about Rafael, what his school life was like, and what he was doing afterwards.  If you can read Swedish, check them out.  If you can't read Swedish, use Google Translate and copy and paste the threads to read more. 

https://www.flashback.org/t671624 is the first link and the second link is at http://www.svenskamord.se/index.php?topic=247.0

Redondo Union High School, Los Angeles, California

Friday, October 26, 2001

A male senior took a loaded .38-caliber handgun with him to school today in his backpack.  The senior placed his backpack on a ledge at the school around 10 a.m., but it fell off and the gun went off, injuring a 16-year-old junior.  The bullet pierced one of his lungs before exiting near his collar bone. The wounded male junior was taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center where he was in stable condition after surgery.  Doctors expect a full recovery.

A Charter (High) School in Saginaw, Mississippi

Friday, October 26, 2001

Also today, gunshots rang out as a couple of 17-year-old male students were engaged in horseplay.  Inside the pocket of a coat the the two boys were tossing around was a loaded gun.  It went off and injured one of the boys in the left calf.  The other boy was charged in this shooting.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Tarpon Springs, Florida

Friday, November 2, 2001

Two 11-year-olds fought in the school's locker room over a baseball game today. One of the sixth-graders pulled a knife out but a teacher was able to breakup the fight before injuries were sustained.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

An Elementary School in Macon, Georgia

Monday, November 5, 2001

As classes were being dismissed today, an male assailant slipped into a trailer classroom, struck the female teacher in the face, slammed her to the floor and raped her.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Shiprock, New Mexico

Tuesday, November 6, 2001

In a rare, coordinated attack against school officials, seven students assaulted the interim principal, assistant principal and several staff members today.  Several of the teens had been suspended earlier.  They threatened to kill the ones they had confronted and as they threw rocks at them.  One of them even pulled a knife on an educational assistant.  However, the assistant wasn't stabbed.  Charges were filed against the seven teens.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania

Thursday, November 8, 2001

A former student returned to his school today to attack a current student.  A teacher was able to prevent the attack on the student.  However, the former student, 19, turned his attack on the teacher at this point.  The former student was then detained by the school resource officer and charged with the attack.  Police found Ecstasy on him and charged him possession of a controlled substance as well.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Caro Community School's Adult Learning Center (High School), Caro, Michigan

Monday, November 12, 2001

Chris Buschbacher, 17, was upset over a breakup with his girlfriend two days earlier.  He went to his alternative high school early today, then left and returned about 3 p.m. with a .22-caliber rifle and a 20-guage shot gun. His ex-girlfriend was in the science room when returned with the guns, however, Chris only took Joseph Gottler, the teacher, and a 15-year-old girl, Audrea Jackson, hostage.  He did fire a shot at principal Erl Nordstrom while inside the school, however, the shot missed the principle.  Chris negotiated with police to free Audrea for a pack of cigarettes and a light.  He freed Joseph 90 minutes later.  Chris then shot himself in the head at 6:16 p.m. with the shot gun as a state police team was preparing to enter the building.  The school, of roughly 110, does not have metal detectors, security checkpoints or guards. 

A High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Tuesday, November 13, 2001

Seven students attacked a 17-year-old male student in a hallway as he was on his way to the lunch room.  The seven fractured the boy's skull and gave him a blood clot that required brain surgery.  Surprisingly, this assault wasn't reported to the police by the school or police officials at the school.  It was the hospital staff that informed the police of the assault.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Lincoln, Nebraska

Monday, November 19, 2001

During a dispute in class between two 13-year-old female students, one of them stabbed the other in the head with a pair of scissors.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

An Elementary School in Richmond, Virginia

Monday, November 19, 2001

Around 7:15 a.m., a 22-year-old first-year female second-grade teacher was preparing her student's lesson plan when a male entered the room and assaulted her.  The man claimed to have a gun and robbed her of her jewelry and hit her on the head.  When she screamed the man fled the room.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in Jacksonville, Florida

Tuesday, November 27, 2001

A knock on a door was answered by a teacher this morning around 7:30 a.m.  The knocker was a male transient who had taped a knife to the end of a stick.  When the 57-year-old teacher opened the door, he was struck on the side of his face and jaw.  In a effort to defend himself, the teacher raised his arm, and the transient slashed him there as well.  The teacher was treated and released while the police believe the attack to be random selection.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Friendswood Junior High School, Friendswood, Texas

Friday, November 30, 2001

Gunshots tore through a portable building at this junior high school this morning around 9:15 a.m.  Eighteen students and their teacher were in the building when the bullets penetrated the walls and entered the classroom.  One bullet shattered a plastic cup, struck a drawer and lodged itself in the teacher's desk.  The bullet came from a .38-caliber or a 357 Magnum revolver.  Luckily, no one was injured in this shooting.  Currently, police have no suspects. Friendswood is 24 miles southeast of Houston.

Source: Houston Chronicle - School Locked Down / Gunshot Spurs Tight Security on Campus

Springfield High School, Springfield, Massachusetts

Wednesday, December 5, 2001

Reverend Theodore Brown, principal of the school, caught 17-year-old Corey Ramos wearing a hooded jacket in the hallway between classes today.  Wearing the hood over the head is against Springfield's policy, a school for troubled teens.  Theodore told Corey to remove the hood, but the boy ignored his principal.  Theodore followed Corey into a classroom where the two argued.  In fury, Corey pulled out a knife and stabbed the reverend several times in the chest and abdomen as other students looked on in horror.  Bleeding from multiple wounds, Theodore stumbled to the nurse's office and collapsed into a wheel chair.  CPR was started, but to no avail. Corey fled the scene and was picked up by police about half a mile away as he walked down a street.  He pleaded not guilty during his arraignment the next day.  On Wednesday, January 29, 2003, Corey was convicted of murdering Reverend Theodore Brown.  He received an automatic life sentence with the possibility of parole in 2018. 

A High School in Stuart, Florida

Wednesday, December 5, 2001

During a fight between two female students in which an administrator was knocked over a bench, a high school assistant principal had his head slammed against a wall.  He was trying to restrain one of the females, 15.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Chattanooga, Tennessee

Thursday, December 6, 2001

The next day, the second act of violence at a school in Chattanooga occurred.  A fight between three female students began in a hallway today, it spilled into a classroom where one of the girls, 16, injured her two fighting companions and the female teacher with a knife.  None of the injuries were serious.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in San Bernardino, California

Monday, December 10, 2001

A student used a 5-inch-long hunting knife to stab a fellow male classmate, 17, at least six times.  The 17-year-old survived this attack.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Crockett High School, Austin, Texas

Wednesday, December 12, 2001

Jay Hess and Lawrence Goins had a long standing feud and had been "having words" for weeks.  Their pent-up anger exploded into action just after 2 p.m. today as Lawrence overheard Jay make a comment about him in his physical education class.  Lawrence waited until the bell sounded to change classes and followed Jay into a bathroom.  Lawrence began clubbing Jay in the head with a heavy stick.  The first hit knocked Jay to the floor and on his way down, his head hit the toilet.  Lawrence continued to swing as Jay grabbed the stick.  The tumbled from the bathroom into an office and then into a hallway where students called another teacher to separate the two.  Jay was taken to the hospital for for six deep cuts on his head that took staples and stitches to close.  Lawrence was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.  Jay is a 37-year-old assistant varsity coach who had worked at the school for four years.  Lawrence is a 46-year-old assistant junior varsity coach who had worked at the school for 21 years.  The fight started in a private coaches bathroom.

THE INJURED:

Three Different Schools in Taunton, Massachusetts

Thursday, December 13, 2001

This is the first triple occurrence of school violence in one town on one day that I know of.  The principal at a middle school was attacked by a 10-year-old today.  The boy punched the principal, breaking his glasses and then kicked him in the head.  At another middle school, a 12-year-old charged his principal while wielding a pencil.  The boy threatened to kill the man. Lastly, police arrested a 15-year-old high school female student for bringing a knife to class today.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Federal Way, Washington

Monday, December 17, 2001

With a history of being kicked out of school (15 times), a male student, 15, assaulted a female special education teacher today.  The boy was not enrolled in her class and had no prior history of physical outburst, but there is a first time for everything as they say.  The boy hit the teacher with his fist and banged her head into a desk while class was still in session.  The teacher went to the hospital three times to heal the injuries she sustained in this attack.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Boston, Massachusetts

Wednesday, December 19, 2001

A high school sophomore male was beaten up today by three teens, ages 13, 15 and 16, on the edge of the school's campus.  At knifepoint he was robbed of his wallet.  The three teens were not students of this school.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Arlington, Texas

Thursday, December 20, 2001

The extremely violent year of 2001 came to close today when three students pummeled a 17-year-old classmate.  The wounded student was left on the steps of a portable classroom to be discovered.  The three instigators were arrested.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Muldbjerg Public School, Hjorring, Denmark

Tuesday, January 1, 2002

It didn't take any time at all for 2002 to record it's first act of school violence.  Two male ex-students, ages 15 and 20, were frustrated with life and society, so they rang in the new year by breaking 15 large windows at their old school late Tuesday night and set fire to the curtains and toilet paper.  Because of the strong winds, the fire spread quickly.  A fireman noticed the fire around 12:13 a.m. on Wednesday morning.  The rest of the fire department was soon on the scene battling the blaze.  The fire damaged 8,600 square-feet of the school, but because of the holiday, nobody was injured.  The school educates children ranging from 6 to 16-years-old.  The arsonists will held for at least a month as they go through a mental examination.  Hjorring is in the northern part of Denmark.

Raymond High School, Raymond, Mississippi

Friday, January 11, 2002

A suspended 18-year-old student, Claiborne Guice Henderson, returned to his school and held Principal Delesicia Martin, 28, and Assistant Principal  Robert Keenum hostage with a gun for three hours.  Claiborne released them without injury and was charged with two counts of kidnapping and one count of possession of a weapon on school grounds.  Delesicia was just completing her first week as principal of the school, while Robert had been on the job since July

Turlock, California

Friday, January 11, 2002

At an alternative education school today, one student was stabbed in the chest with a pencil by another student.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Plainfield, New Jersey

Monday, January 14, 2002

While trying to break up a fight, a female student, 16, was slashed across her face by fellow female classmate, 17.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Martin Luther King, Jr. High School, New York City, New York

Tuesday, January 15, 2002

Two students were seriously wounded in their final class of the day at their school on the birthday of the man their school was named for.  Andrel Napper was shot in his lower back and Andre Wilkens was shot in his hip by a .380-caliber automatic gun.  The two boys were wounded in a fourth-floor hallway around 2 p.m. while the gun was found on the fifth floor along with three shell casings.  Andre told his father that he and boy who shot him had argued during the winter break, and that the boy had threatened to shoot him. The school does use metal detectors, but students have a habit of going through the scanners and then going to a side door that is not monitored and letting other students in from that door. The student body is an impressive at 2,600.  Police originally speculated the shooting to be gang related, but later discovered Andrel and Andre had teased a girl and pulled a bandanna off her head.  Police also arrested Jevon Espinoza, 18, but later ruled him out as the shooter.  However, Jevon had an outstanding warrant against him and was held on that charge. Police did make arrest by the end of the week when they brought in Vincent Rodriguez, 18, boyfriend of the girl Andrel and Andre teased.

THE INJURED:

Appalachian School of Law, Grundy, Virginia

Wednesday, January 16, 2002

The next day, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, in the small town of Grundy, school violence struck again when 42-year-old Peter Odighizuwa, a student from Nigeria who voluntarily withdrew from classes due to poor academic performance, came to the Appalachian School of Law, a small school for lawyers in the coalfields of southwest Virginia.  The student body is only 170.  When he arrived this morning, he visited with Professor Dale Rubin and asked him to pray for him.  Peter then went to the offices of Dean L. Anthony Sutin and Professor Thomas Blackwell.  He pulled out a .380 caliber ACP semi-automatic handgun, the same type of gun used yesterday in New York, and killed both men at point blank range.  Peter also killed student Angela Dales and injured three more students.  Students Tracy Bridges and Mikael Gross heard the shots that Peter had fired and ran to their cars.  Tracy picked up his .357 Magnum pistol from his Chevy Tahoe and Mikael grabbed his 9mm pistol and bulletproof vest that he got from his job, a police officer with the Grifton Police Department.  Tracy and Mikael confronted Peter from different angles as he left the building.  Tracy yelled at Peter to drop his gun, which he did.  Then Ted Besen, another student, subdued Peter.  Mikael got his handcuffs and detained Peter until the police arrived.  On Monday, October 13, 2003, a grand jury indicted Peter on three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder.  Grundy is close to where the Kentucky and West Virginia state lines meet the Virginia state line.

THOSE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Wikipedia - Appalachian School of Law Shooting

A High School in Fort Pierce, Florida

Wednesday, January 16, 2002

An 18-year-old male student caused a lot of commotion today in one of the school's restrooms.  He was holding a glove, which a school resource officer believe to contain a weapon, and refused to drop it.  When the officer called for help on his radio, the instigator swatted the radio away and assaulted the officer.  Another student joined in the fray and both were charged in this attack.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Broward Community College, Davie, Florida

Friday, January 18, 2002

Michael Holness shot his girlfriend, Moriah Pierce, in the back of her head this morning around 10:45 a.m. and then turned the .357-magnum on himself to bring this very active, and violent, school week to a close.  The shooting occurred on the west side of the campus between the Bailey Concert Hall and Chester Handleman Hall with a throng of students all around.  Family and friends say the two had a relationship and a falling out four months ago.  This morning, they argued briefly before he pulled out the gun and shot her and then himself.  Michael and Moriah were taken to Broward General Hospital and died two minutes apart, at 11:45 a.m. and 11:47 a.m. respectively.

THOSE WHO DIED:

A High School in Boston, Massachusetts

Friday, January 18, 2002

Violence broke out again today in Boston when the wife of teacher, she herself a teacher at the school, assaulted her estranged husband while he taught class.  The wife was 40-years-old at the time of the attack.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A Middle School in St. Louis, Missouri

Friday, January 18, 2002

Using an unnamed object, a 13-year-old stabbed a 7th-grade girl four to five times in the thigh.  The hospital used 20 stitches to close the wounds.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Oley High School, Oley, Pennsylvania

Thursday, January 24, 2002

A school bus driver, with a loaded semiautomatic rifle, kidnapped 13 students this morning and took them over 150 miles away before stopping in Landover Hills, Maryland, near the I95 and I495 interchange.  The driver, Otto Nuss, 63, stopped to feed the children at a Burger King and went into a nearby Family Dollar store where he surrendered to the store security officer.  The children, ages 6 to 16, were picked up from the high school and were supposed to be taken to Berks Christian Academy in Exeter, which is 15 minutes away.  Instead, they went for a five hour drive south.  None of the children were injured in this kidnapping.   Otto was hired at the beginning of the school year and passed a back ground check.  On Tuesday, September 23, 2003, Otto was sentenced to four years in prison for federal kidnapping

Catawba College, Salisbury, North Carolina

Friday, January 25, 2002

Rival college students, all night parties with alcohol and guns are Hollywood staples for some movies.  Tonight they all came together in reality.  The party was at Pine Knot Dorm on the campus, with about 70 students, both white and black, enjoying the night... until a heated argument spilled out onto the lawn shortly after 11 p.m.  One student from nearby Livingston College pulled out a gun and began firing.  By the time the chaos had ended, Darris Morris, an all-conference linebacker, was dead and seven others were wounded.  The wounded included Catawba students Demetrius "Duke" Phipps, shot in the right hand and leg; Bradley McCrary, shot in the leg; and Ortheus Barge, injured his leg trying to flee from the shooting.  Livingston students Terrence Austin, minor head injury, and Ricardo Battle were also wounded.  Ricardo states he was shot in the head but still managed to fire off two rounds himself.  After the gunfire erupted, the Livingston students fled in a 1993 Dodge Dynasty loaded with 42 grams of marijuana and a small amount of crack cocaine.  Catawba security guard Allen Hinson returned fire as the car left the area, using his .40-caliber handgun.  Police arrested Terence Austin, Ricardo Battle, Morris Brannon, 20; Isaac Brazeal, 19;  Corey Peterson, 19; and Karl Wilson, 19; all from Livingston, for first degree murder as they began to work the case of who fired the fatal shot.  Police also recovered two handguns, a .22-caliber and a 9mm, from the crime scene, as well as shell casings matching the guns.

THE ONE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Skyline High School, Dallas, Texas

Friday, February 1, 2002

Three students robbed a teacher this morning and were charged with robbery when one of them went to the principal in hopes of getting a reward for turning in an accomplice.  Stanley Baker was robbed of $1,305 (from the school's store), a cell phone and a set of school keys from a breezeway about 7:45 a.m.  Two of the students confronted Stanley and one of them pointed a gun at him saying, " Throw the bag down. If you don't I'll kill you." Stanley surrendered the bag and the two walked through the school building and out a back door.  Principal Claudia Rodriguez announced a a reward for information, so one of the robbers turned himself in, thinking he'd get the reward.  Two of the students were arrested at the school while the third was taken into custody at his home.  The money was recovered.  The students were 15, 16 and 17-years-old.

Brock High School, Brock, Texas

Friday, February 1, 2002

(Webmaster's note:  I never enjoy adding a school to this ever growing list.  In keeping with my own guidelines of school violence, I have to add Brock to this list.  However, Brock has already been hit with a much more severe tragic event that introduced me to the community. Brock High hits close to home because I know this school, I've been there several times and I've talked with several people of the community.  Six days before Christmas 1998, after their homecoming game, four of Brock's cheerleaders were killed by a drunk driver as they returned home.  Three of the cheerleaders were also on the Lady Eagles basketball team.  You can learn more about Staci Lee, Mandi McWhorter, Whitney Welch and Lacey Osina here.)

While Amy McAdams was aiding in coaching the Brock Lady Eagles over the Poolville Lady Monarchs, her husband, Thomas, 39, was in the school's parking lot shattering the windows of her van with a baseball bat and the truck of baseball coach William Sanders.  He lingered nearby until she and William came out of the school.  William and Amy were having an affair, one in which she told her husband about earlier this week.  Thomas pulled out a .22-caliber handgun and fired at his wife's lover.  William was hit twice in the side.  Amy was slightly injured from flying glass.   William and Amy were treated for their injuries while Thomas was arrested and charged with attempted murder.  Over the weekend, both William and Amy resigned their coaching positions from Brock High.

THE INJURED:

Gardena High School, Los Angeles, California

Wednesday, February 6, 2002

School violence in February continue to roll with it's third act in four school days.  Two students were wounded during an attempted robbery this afternoon at Gardena.  A 16-year-olg girl and a 19-year-old boy were wounded when three other teenagers confronted the two in a hallway outside bathrooms  near the center of campus.  The students were in between classes at the time, 2:50 p.m.  The instigators demanded money from the boy, but he replied, "I don't have any money."  To which one of the instigators replied, "Well, I've got a gun."  The girl and the boy turned and started walking away at that point, but one of the instigators pulled out a pistol and opened fire.  The boy was hit in the lower back and girl was shot in the hip.  Police said the instigators were two current and one former student. The student body of school is 2,300.

THE INJURED:

Roosevelt High School, Chicago, Illinois

Thursday, February 7, 2002

As classes were dismissing for today, two 16-year-old boys began fighting in front of Roosevelt High when 15-year-old Jose Vela began firing on his classmates.  Jose injured the two boys and a female student.  The girl attended Roosevelt and was shot in the arm.  The two boys, one being Jason Chavez, were from nearby Schurz High School. This shooting happened at 2:50 p.m.  One of the boys was shot in the back and in serious condition at Advocate Illinoise Masonic Medical Center.  The other boy and the girl were treated and released. 

Monroe Academy High School, New York City, New York

Monday, February 11, 2002

On Friday, February 8, 2002, 18-year-old Malachi Wong was knifed in a gang fight.  Today, members of Malachi's gang were out looking for revenge.  Gerard Johnson, 15, Anthony Debose, 17, Daniel Benjamin, also 17, Timothy Steel, 18 and an unnamed boy spotted 16-year-old Kihiam Bradshaw, a male basketball player at Monroe, as he was walking to school.  The Bloods gang members jumped Kihiam and stabbed him five times, once in the back, once in each side, his buttocks and his left hand.  Kihiam was taken to Jacobi Hospital with a collapsed lung.  After the stabbing, the police arrested the four named suspects and began looking for the unnamed boy.  All five of them attend Monroe as well.  Kihiam's nephew told police this was a case of mistaken identity and that his uncle had gotten stabbed for the wrong reasons.

Source: New York Post- Gang Stabs Bronx HS Hoop Star

A High School in East St. Louis, Illinois

Monday, February 11, 2002

In a rash of group beatings, three happened here in East St. Louis.  On Saturday night, after a school dance, 25 individuals attacked a 14-year-old boy and once that attack was completed, four girls attacked a 13-year-old female.  Today, a group of 20 males attacked a boy, 15, in the school's cafeteria.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Fairfield University, Fairfield, Connecticut

Tuesday, February 12, 2002

Former student Patrick Arbelo, 24, walked into Associate Professor Elizabeth A. Dreyer's "Voices of Medieval Women" class in Canisius Hall around 4:00 p.m. this afternoon.  He stated he was carrying a bomb in his bag and held the professor and 22 students hostage.  Shortly after taking control of the room, Patrick released five women and agreed to relinquish a knife he was carrying as well.  Seven hostages were freed one at a time over the next several hours, with four being released at 8:00 p.m. Five hostages were released an hour later leaving one male student with Patrick.  He released his last hostage, Ripton Marini, 22, at 10:10 p.m. and then surrendered just after 11:00 p.m.  Patrick used a seeing eye dog while he was attending classes, but this afternoon he left his dog at home.

A High School in Hephzibah, Georgia

Tuesday, February 12, 2002

Using a scribe from shop class, an 18-year-old male student created a two inch stab wound on a male classmate's lower back.  The wounded boy was 16.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

McEachern High School, Atlanta, Georgia

Friday, February 15, 2002

A no-holds-barred fight between eight to ten male students resulted in the stabbing of one of the participants.  Michael Jerome Parker, 17, pulled out his pocketknife and slashed out at an unnamed 18-year-old classmate.  A campus police officer responded to the brawl and quickly arrested Michael.  The injured student was cut on his back and taken to the hospital where he was treated and released.

Freising, Germany

Tuesday, February 19, 2002

A former student, 22, of an economics school in Freising killed his boss and a foreman. He then took a cab back to his school and walked right through the front door as he used to.  He killed the headmaster before setting off pipe bombs.  He ended the rampage by blowing himself up.  Another teacher was shot in the face but survived the shooting.

An Elementary School in Lilbrun, Georgia

Thursday, February 21, 2002

In a random act of school violence, a 29-year-old male walked into the school today and bashed a female student, 8, on the head.  The male was arrested a few blocks from the school.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

A High School in Cashmere, Washington

Thursday, February, 21, 2002

After a male classmate, 16, made racial slurs at him, a 14-year-old male student retaliated with at least eight stabs to the older boy's back, side and chest.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Bowie High School, Arlington, Texas

Thursday, February 21, 2002

Just after 11 a.m., a handful of students in the cafeteria began fighting.  The school's two on-site police officers tried to break up the fight using pepper spray.  The melee escalated and backup officers were called in.  By the time they arrived, 25 students were throwing bottles and fighting each other.  Over 200 other students were nearby, most of them watching the commotion, and staying out of the way.  Two police officers were wounded in trying to restore order.  One was cut on his hand while the other sustained a cut to his head.  Eleven students received minor injuries during the fight.  Most of these injuries were minor scrapes and bruises and for breathing in the pepper spray. The backup officers were able to pull students out of the fight and arrest them.  Their actions brought the whole fight to quick end.  Six Bowie students and two adults were detained by the police for instigating, or sustaining, the fight. School officials said Bowie is not a troubled school, even though police records show that 14 fights have already taken place at the school since January 1.  In comparison, Martin High School, the district's largest, has had 17 fights already this calendar year.

Source: Dallas Morning News - 13 Hurt, 8 Held in Fight at Arlington Bowie High

State University of New York, Farmingdale, New York

Monday, February 25, 2002

Tonight, two girlfriends got into an argument this afternoon that led to a shooting in a SUNY dorm room.  Curtis Agard's girlfriend began to argue with Anklam Dwyer's girlfriend over an unknown topic.  Curtis wanted to get the unknown matter resolved so he went to SUNY's Lehman Hall to speak with Anklam's twin brother, Anklave Dwyer.  Curtis, 21, brought with him a .38-caliber revolver and shot Anklave, 26, after confronting him.  Anklave was rushed to Nassau University Medical Center where he was listed in critical condition and Curtis was arrested on charges of assault and criminal possession and use of a firearm.

Source: New York Times - Former Student Is Shot In SUNY Dorm

Shelby Valley High School, Pikeville, Kentucky

Monday, February 25, 2002

Winning at all costs usually doesn't involve beating up your rival's star player, but that's what happened tonight on Shelby's football field after Shelby Valley beat Pikeville 54-39 in a basketball tournament in the school's gym.  Six Shelby Valley students were charged with assaulting Millard High School basketball standout Jarrod Adkins, sending Jarrod to the hospital with a head injury and a broken hand.  Three other teens were also treated for injuries sustained in the assault.  Millard lost to Pike Central High 88-63 on Wednesday which put Pike and Shelby into the championship game.

Fuller Elementary School, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts

Tuesday, February 26, 2002

Seldom does the same type of violent act hit the same spot twice, but that is happened here in Boston today. Cassandra Price was outraged that first grade teacher Xochitl Perez disciplined her daughter yesterday.  Xochitl tried to dismiss her students so that they wouldn't have to see Cassandra's violent side.  Cassandra followed Xochitl around the classroom and swatted away her hand of papers when Xochitl raised them up between them to keep Cassandra's saliva from landing on her.  Cassandra kept coming and shoved Xochitl before a male teacher and a female teacher were able to drag her out of Room 104 and out of the building.  Xochitl went to the hospital and didn't want to talk about the incident when asked by reporters.  The first violent, and very similar, act happened on January 19, 2001.

A High School in Fairfax, Virginia

Tuesday, March 5, 2002

During a fight at this evening's musical and fashion show, two students began fighting.  When it was broken up by teachers and other staff members, one of the fighters, an 18-year-old student, had stab wounds on his body.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

John Barrett Middle School, Carmichael, California

Wednesday, March 20, 2002

A 13-year-old boy who had grown "tired of authority" walked into a seventh grade science classroom with a list of eight school officials he planned to shoot.  The boy carried a .22-caliber revolver and 50 rounds of ammunition.  He pulled out the  revolver and aimed it at the teacher's, Laura Pierson, head, ordering her to lock the door.  She escaped from the room and went to get the school's armed security guard.  With the boy poised to open fire, the security guard was able to get the boy to drop the gun and surrender peacefully. 

H. E. McCracken Middle School, Bluffton, South Carolina

Thursday, March 28, 2002

To join the Latin Mafia gang, one must first go through an initiation.  The gang told their newest perspective members to beat up Francisco Belman, an eighth-grader at H. E. McCracken Middle School.  Today, in a boy's bathroom, the initiates began to earn his way into the Latin Mafia.  They punched Francisco several times in the chest until he collapsed in cardiac arrest.  Francisco was transported to the hospital where he went into a coma.  On June 10, 2002, Francisco died from his injuries.  The two initiates, 13 and 14-years-old, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in 2004. They are currently under the Department of Juvenile Justice until they turn 21.

Source: The Island Packet - Stabbings at McCracken (published 3-10-05)

Lafayette Elementary School, Everett, Massachusetts

Wednesday, April 3, 2002

One of the 12-year-old boys attending classes at Lafayette had an erratic attendance record.  Truancy officials watched his home and never saw him coming or going.  They called in the boys parents, Richard, 47, and Gina Caissie, to verify the boy actually lived on Shute Street. The meeting, with truant officer Jay Merritt, 67, happened this morning at 9:00 a.m.  When Jay provided evidence that the boy didn't live on Shute Street, and therefore not in the school district, Richard leapt to his feet and "socked him hard twice" in the face.  Jay was rushed to the hospital with severe lacerations and a damaged left eye.  Richard was arrested on charges of assault and battery on a person over 60.  Everett school officials have found 75 students living outside their school district attending classes illegally.   One of the reasons for this is the Lafayette is a new school in a safer neighborhood than those in the surrounding area.

Songhai Learning Institute, Chicago, Illinois

Thursday, April 4, 2002

Animosity that has been mounting since a Halloween egg-throwing incident (followed by multiple fights, taunts and graffiti) came to fruition today as nearly two dozen students from nearby Curtis Elementary School, ages 10-14, were charged with "mob action" after they attacked 18 students from Songhai with baseball bats and planks of wood.  Most of the injuries were minor cuts and bruises, but a few Songhai students were treated at local hospitals.  Songhai students were still scared to go to school on Friday.

Johann Gutenberg High School, Erfurt, Germany

Friday, April 26, 2002

The deadliest school shooting for teachers exploded in this quiet town on the old East Germany-West Germany border today with pin point precision accuracy.  An expelled former student, Robert Steinhaeuser, arrived at the school and quickly entered a first floor restroom where he changed into a  black ninja suite (hooded mask, pants, sweat jacket, gloves and shoes).  He walked the halls, rooms and restrooms of the school hunting down 13 teachers, and two students.  When students saw him roaming the halls, the quickly began to barricade their classroom door, but Robert fired six shots through the door and the impromptu barricade.  The bullets struck  Ronny Mockel in his stomach and Susann Hartung in her back.  A flood of frighten students began exiting the school, but Robert was right there with them and fired seven rounds into Birgit Dettke, a teacher.  Police officer Andreas Gorski responded to the call of a "disturbance at the school." He was the first to respond, and as he stepped into the school at 11:15 a.m., was also the last to be gunned down.  Six others were wounded.  Robert carried a 9 mm Glock handgun and a pump action shotgun.  The siege ended when history teacher Rainer Heiser pushed Robert into classroom 111, tore off his mask and locked the door. Robert put his mask back on and killed himself as police commandos closed in on his location.  Robert fired 40 shots in his 20 minute rampage, and killed 17 people total.  The janitor called police at 11:05 a.m. to report this rare shooting in a German school. The school has 750 students ranging in grades 5 to 12 in ages from 10 to 19. Germany has one of the world's strictest gun laws, however, Robert joined an officially accredited club for sport shooting and passed the rigorous German tests required to own a gun.  After the shootings, the school was closed down and underwent major renovations ($12.3 million worth).  It reopened to students and teachers on Monday, August 29, 2005.  Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder attended the ceremony.

THOSE WHO DIED:

Source: Echoes of Columbine Message Board - Return to Erfurt (Sign of the Times on www.ezboard.com); BBC News - Tragic German School is Reopened; L. A. Times - Germany School Reopens After 2002 Rampage

Marion Abramson High School, New Orleans, Louisiana

Friday, April 26, 2002

Two school guards who began to horseplay at tonight's dance ended the scheduled happy night with one of their deaths.  Toran Joseph, 38, pointed his 9 mm pistol at Richard Antoine, 54, who kicked it kung-fu style.  The gun went off and Richard was shot in the chest and died at a nearby hospital.  Toran was charged with negligent homicide.  This shooting took place about 9:45 p.m.

Vlasenica High School, Vlasenica, Bosnia

Monday, April 29, 2002

Around 1:30 p.m. today, Dragoslav Petkovic, shot and killed his history teacher, Stanimir Reljic, in the head in front of the school in this east Bosnia town.  Afterwards, Dragoslav enters a classroom and injures math teacher Saveta Mojsilvic, in the neck.  The teen then committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.  Dragoslav's weapon of choice was a 7.65 mm handgun.  Vlasenica is a poor town 30 miles northeast of Sarajevo.

THOSE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Lakewood High School, Arlington, Virginia

Monday, May 13, 2002

An expelled teenage student returned to his school wielding a 10-inch knife in one hand and a 12-inch knife in the other.  He held a class hostage for more than an hour before the school's principal entered the room in an attempt to defuse the situation.  She was unsuccessful.  When the school's resource officer entered with his gun drawn, the teen finally surrendered.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Yeshivat Hetzim, an Orthodox Jewish High School, Itamar, Israel

Tuesday, May 28, 2002

A Palestinian gunman sneaked onto the school grounds late this afternoon and opened fire on a group of teens playing basketball.  He killed Gilad Steiglitz and Netanel Riahi instantly with multiple gunshot wounds to their chests.  He then went into the school where he killed Avraham Siton and wounded two 14-year-olds.  The gunman was wounded by Itamar's security chief Arieh Kleiman and killed by Principal Rabbi Nitzan Yamini, who is a reserve paratroop officer who routinely sleeps with his M16 assault rifle next to his bed.  The Akas Martyrs Brigades, affiliated with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility shortly after the school shooting was reported. Itamar is near Nablus.

THOSE WHO DIED:

Public School 4 (Elementary), Washington Heights, New York City, New York

Thursday, June 13, 2002

Substitute teacher Danilo Nunez, 57, lost control of his first-grade class and lashed out at 20 students with a broom handle early this afternoon. The children were sent to the hospital for welts and bruises they sustained in the attack, which took place at 1:30 p.m.  Some of the children had marks on their backs and shoulders, one had a mark on the face.  Some had their hair pulled, ears twisted or slapped.   Danilo was charged with 31 counts of assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

A High School in Indiana, Pennsylvania

Friday, June 21, 2002

Today, a 39-year-old man demanded to see the superintendent.  When the 48-year-old secretary tried to explain to him the superintendent wasn't in the building, he shot the secretary in the leg.  The man's wife was a former district teacher and it is believed to a contributor to his mood.

Source: National School Safety and Security Services web site

Coulwood Middle School, Charlotte, North Carolina

Friday, July 26, 2002

Shane Hyde, 17, shot and killed 27-year-old Ricco Montres Cooper in the school's parking lot today.  The two men knew each other, but Ricco had no ties to the school.  Police began to search for a motive.

Source: National School Safety Center's Report on School Associated Violent Deaths

Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon

Wednesday, July 31, 2002

Ahmad Mansour, 43, worked for 23 years as an office clerk in the teacher's compensation fund in the Lebanese University Education Ministry.  He had an 18 million Lebanese pound (12,000 American dollars) loan that he was unable to payback.  His car was confiscated in an effort to make him payback the loan.  Ahmad became disgruntled and attacked the school this morning.  He arrived carrying a suitcase containing two pistols and a Kalashnikov assault rifle.  Ahmad began firing into the air, then lowered his gun as he made his way to the third floor offices where the shooting began.  Some of his colleagues rushed out of their offices to their balconies, but Ahmad shot through the windows and found his targets just the same.  Ahmad killed eight people and wounded five others before running out of ammo.  He walked downstairs, lit a cigarette and was arrested by the police as they arrived.

Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel

Wednesday, July 31, 2002

In the packed Frank Sinatra International Student Center on the Mount Scopus campus of the Hebrew University, a  bomb, filled with nails and metal, killed seven people and injured up to 70 others as they waited in the lunch line.  The university was bustling with students as it is common for them to be taking tests during this time.  The blast brought down part of the ceiling and blew out windows. Original reports had a suicide bomber detonating the device, but police reports said the bomb was left in a bag in the middle of the cafeteria and exploded on its own.  The militant group Hamas said the attack was in revenge for Israel's air strike on Gaza City last week in which one of their leaders were killed along with 14 civilians.

THOSE WHO DIED:

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