Violence in Our Schools

August 1, 2011 through July 31, 2012

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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.

 Memphis Junior Academy (Middle School), Memphis, Tennessee

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

A new school year, a new list of acts of school violence.  This year begins in Memphis with 49-year-old Principal Suzette York being stabbed to death by 17-year-old Eduardo Marmolejo.  The police were called to the Seventh-Day Adventist affiliated school and arrived on scene at 11:25 this morning.  They found Suzette dead in one of the classrooms.  Not only was she the principal of the school, she also taught there as well.  Eduardo was still at the school when the police arrived.  They arrested him and charged him with first degree murder later in the day.  He told them he had been planning this since May. He said he did not like her and she made him angry. Students had been in class for only three days when Suzette was killed.  The school closed for the rest of the week and reopened on Monday, August 15, 2011.

Source: Yahoo! News - Principal Found Dead in Memphis Classroom, Student Held; The Commercial Appeal - Principal Killed at East Memphis Private School; Student Suspect Charged with 1st-Degree Murder

Jose de Choudens Middle School, Arroyo, Puerto Rico

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

While students were on the playground during lunch today, a 14-year-old girl wrecked havoc on them, and the school, by stabbing 37 of her classmates with a hypodermic needle.  After stabbing her first classmate, she quickly moved on the next, never tarrying at any one student. The injured students, and their parents, gathered at a convention center where the students were struck again with needles, this time all of them brand new and sterilized, as they had blood drawn for HIV and hepatitis C.  It is unknown if the needle the 14-year-old girl was using had anything in the syringe.  The unidentified teen was suspended from the school.  She told authorities she stole the syringe while visiting a relative in the hospital.  She wanted to use it to pierce her ears.

Source: Washington Post - Officials: Teen Goes on Rampage at Puerto Rico School, Stabbing 37 Classmates with Needle; New York Daily News - Puerto Rico Girl Stabs 37 Classmates with Needle, Sparking Fears of Spreading of HIV, Hepatitis C

Cape Fear High School, Fayetteville, North Carolina

Monday, October 24, 2011

Caitlyn Ambercrombie, 15, was walking past the cafeteria breezeway when she was shot in the neck today.  The school's police officer was nearby and was able to call for backup within seconds.  Caitlyn was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center and was in stable condition after surgery.  Police arrested Ta'von McLaurin, 18, and unidentified 15-year-old later in the day.  Police do not believe that Caitlyn was the intended target of this school shooting.  The police were able to recover a .22-caliber rifle and shell casing just outside the breezeway doors.

Source: Los Angeles Times - Two Arrested in Shooting of Girl, 15, at North Carolina School; WRAL Channel 5 - Two in Custody After Girl Shot in Neck at Cumberland High School

Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, Virginia

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Yesterday, 22-year-old Radford University student Ross Truett Ashley stole a Mercedes-Benz SUV from his landlord's office.  Today, while Virginia Tech officials were in Washington, D.C., fighting a $55,000 federal government fine over how they handled the April 2007 massacre that killed 33 students and teachers, school violence hit the university again.  Officer Deriek W. Crouse stopped in the Cassell Coliseum parking lot to write a ticket to a student  for a traffic violation.  It was 12:15 in the afternoon.  While he was sitting in his patrol car,  Ross walked up to the driver's side window, pulled out a gun and killed Deriek.  Ross then fled the scene on foot to some nearby greenhouses.  Once inside, he shed his pullover wool cap, leaving it and his backpack behind. Ross then went to The Cage parking lot on the university campus, about a half mile away.  He was spotted by a deputy sheriff and when Ross noticed the deputy, he committed suicide.  The Mercedes SUV was located in home in Blacksburg, about 10 miles away from the university.

Source: MSNBC - Police: Virginia Tech Gunman Acted Alone; MSNBC - Police Officer, Gunman Dead in Virginia Tech Shooting; Yahoo! News - Va. Tech: Gunman in Police Killing Wasn't a Student; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Campus Gunman 'Friendly,' Pals Say; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Virginia Tech Killer a Nearby Collegian

Harwell Middle School, Edinburg, Texas

Monday, December 12, 2011

Harwell Middle School opened this year on rural property northeast of the town.  Open fields stretch out behind and to the north of the school.  This afternoon, around 4:45, during basketball tryouts on the outdoors court, Nicholas Tijerina, 13, and Edson Amaro, 14, were shot and wounded by gunfire that originated off school grounds.  Police believe the two boys were shot by hunters, but haven't determined if they were targeted or if this is an accidental shooting.  One of the boys was going up for a layup while the other boy was waiting his turn to tryout when they were shot.  Both were rushed to the hospital where one is in critical condition with a bullet inside his body while the other is in stable condition.  Police did detain three deer hunters, but so far none of them have been charged with perpetrating this school shooting.  Edson lost a kidney while Nicholas had the bullets removed from his body in January, however he still does not have feeling in his legs. On January 6, 2012, police charged Dustin Wesley Cook with aggravated assault.  Dustin was target shooting with a sniper rifle on a ranch that was a mile away from the school.

Source: Yahoo! News - 2 Students Shot, Wounded at Texas Middle School; MSNBC - Deer Hunters Held in Middle-School Shooting; Arkansas-Democrat-Gazette - Bullet Now Out of Texas Boy's Back

Cummings Middle School, Brownsville, Texas

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

This morning at 8:00, the police were called to Cummings Middle School to investigate and disarm 15-year-old Jaime Gonzalez, an 8th grade male student, who was wielding a gun and roaming the campus.  The police arrived, found Jaime in one of the school's hallways, and ended up firing upon him because he was about to engage them in a fire fight.  Jaime was carrying a pellet gun, which resembles a real gun and refused to put the weapon down.  When he raised it at the police officers, they fired upon him three times.  He died from his wounds.

Source: MSNBC - Police Kill Armed Teen Student at Texas School; Yahoo! News - Texas Police Kill 8th-Grader Carrying Pellet Gun

Walpole Elementary School, Walpole, New Hampshire

Friday, February 10, 2012

After being depressed about a "relationship issue" with a girl, 14-year-old Hunter Mack shot himself in the face in the cafeteria this morning at 11 a.m.  Several students witness the self inflicted gunshot wound and scattered when the gun went off.  Hunter was taken to a hospital and was in serious condition as of Friday afternoon.  This is the first act of school violence that I have from the state of New Hampshire.

Source: Yahoo! News - NH 14-Year-Old Shoots Self in Face in Cafeteria

Armin Jahr Elementary School, Bremerton, Washington

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

An unnamed 9-year-old third grade boy had a loaded .45-caliber Heckler and Koch pistol in his backpack, which he brought to school today.  Around 1:30, the boy slammed his backpack down upon a desk, causing the pistol to fire.  The bullet struck 8-year-old classmate Amina Kocer-Bowman in the abdomen.  Amina was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where she was listed in critical condition.  The boy was booked at the Kitsap County juvenile detention and charged with unlawful possession of a gun, bringing a dangerous weapon to school and third-degree assault.  The police were able to recover the gun from the classroom. Kitsap County prosecutor Russ Haugen said he will be seeking probation and treatment for our young shooter.

Source: Yahoo! News - 8-Year-Old Critical After Wash. School Shooting; ABC News - Girl, 8, Shot in Her Third-Grade Classroom; Yahoo! News - Boy, 9, Charged in Shooting of Third-Grade Classmate; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Won't Jail 'Little Boy,' Official Says

Chardon High School, Chardon, Ohio

Monday, February 27, 2012

At 7:30 this morning as students gathered in the cafeteria before classes, 17-year-old T.J. Lane pulled out a .22-caliber revolver and began firing upon a group of friends seated at one table.  T.J. wounded five students before being chased from the school by Frank Hall, one of the assistant football coaches at Chardon.  T.J. turned himself into a passerby and was arrested about half a mile away by the police.  Daniel Parmertor, Russell King, Jr. and Demetrius Hewlin were flown to MetroHealth System in Cleveland while Nick Walczak and Joy Rickers were taken to Hillcrest Hospital by ambulances.  Later in the day, Daniel died from his wounds.  He was a junior and attended nearby Auburn Career Academy, a vocational school, where he studied computer science.  He was waiting for a bus to take him to his school when the gunfire started.  Early Tuesday morning, at 12:42, Russell was declared brain dead.  Later in the day it was announced that Demetrius had also died from his wounds.  Demetrius also attended Auburn Career Academy.  Nick was paralyzed from the chest down and family members hope it is a temporary condition.  Nate Mueller was sitting at the table with Daniel and the others and his ear was grazed by one of the bullets.  Although he did not go to the hospital, he was injured and treated at the scene.  T.J. Lane did not attend classes at Chardon, but at Lake Academy.

THOSE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Source: MSNBC - Official: 1 Dead, 4 Hurt in Ohio School Shooting; Yahoo! News - Chardon High School Shooting Left 'Friends Laying All Over the Place'; Yahoo! News - Chardon High School Shooting: Second Student Dies as Alleged Gunman in Identified; MSNBC - Third Student Dies in Ohio School Shooting; Yahoo! News - Ohio School Shooting: Parents of Slain Student Forgive Suspected Shooter TJ Lane; Washington Times - When Violence in the Home Goes to School

Medes (High) School, Sulaimaniyah, Kurdistan, Iraq

Thursday, March 1, 2012

During this morning's sports lecture, an argument arose between 18-year-old Biyar Sarwar and his 33-year-old American gym teacher Jeremiah Small.  The argument climaxed when Biyar pulled out a gun and shot Jeremiah three times in the head and chest.  Jeremiah died in the classroom.  Biyar then turned the gun on himself and fired another round into his head.  He was taken to the hospital where he later died.  Medes School is a private Christian academy of elementary through secondary grade-level classes.

Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - American Teacher Slain in Iraq

Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi

Saturday, March 24, 2012

This evening, 21-year-old John Sanderson and two other students let Mason Perry Jones, Dontae Harvey and Trent Crump, all 21-years-old and all non-students, into the Evans Hall dormitory on the campus of MSU.  An altercation arose between the students and the non-students.  It ended around 10 p.m. when John was shot multiple times while standing in the hallway.  He was taken to Oktibbeha County Hospital where he died.   The three non-students fled in a blue Crown Victoria.  Mason was arrested by the U.S. Marshals the next day in Memphis, Tennessee, on an unrelated, outstanding robbery warrant from Jackson.  He was traveling north on a bus under an assumed name. At 7:30 p.m. on Monday, March 26, 2012, Dontae surrendered to the U.S. Marshal service at a residence in Jackson.  The next day, police in Gainesville, Florida arrested Trent in connection with John's murder.  No official motive has been given as to why the three non-students shot and killed John Sanderson.

Source: Washington Post - US Marshals Arrest 2nd Suspect in Shooting Death of Mississippi State University Student; WAPT Channel 16 - 2 Men Charged in Fatal Shooting; Washington Post - 3rd Suspect Wanted in the Shooting Death of a Mississippi State Student Arrested in Florida

Kirksey Middle School, Rogers, Arkansas

Sunday, April 1, 2012

This evening 19-year-old Edwin Saldana, 18-year-old Matthew Alan Ferry and several others had an altercation on the grounds of Kirskey Middle School.  Even before getting out of his car, Matthew fired two shots into the air.  The argument climaxed when Matthew shot Edwin in the foot.  The others at the scene then subdued Matthew.  Both of the boys were taken to Mercy Medical Center in Rogers for their injuries.  Hospital personnel informed the police around 9:58 p.m.  Edwin was treated and released, while Matthew was treated and arrested.  He is charged with first-degree battery.  Later in the week, he was also charged with four counts of aggravated assault and possession of a handgun on public school property.

Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Police Investigate Shooting at Rogers Middle School; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Police Arrest Man in Shooting Incident; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette - Shooting Suspect Nets Additional Charges

Oikos University, Oakland, California

Monday, April 2, 2012

Just before 10:30 this morning, 43-year-old One L. Goh walked into Oikos University trying to get a refund on his tuition.  He had been talking with Ellen Cervellon about this issue for some time, but she was not there today.  He had also been mistreated and disrespected by his fellow classmates.  Oikos was founded ten years ago and focuses on nursing education for Asians.  After not being told that Ellen was not in today, One became angry and took the receptionist hostage.  He then started firing at random. It was now 10:33 in morning.  He killed the receptionist, Katleen Ping, then he began walking the halls.  He banged several times on the classroom door of Dechen Wangzom, but she had locked it and turned off the lights.  One fired off a few rounds, shooting out the glass that was in the door and then left the area. He then went into his former nursing classroom and ordered the students to line up against the wall.  They failed to move, until he showed them his gun, and then they started to flee.  One opened fire on them.  Nursing student Dawinder Kaur was shot in the elbow as she fled the room.  When the shooting was over, seven people were dead, three were wounded and One had fled the scene in a Honda Accord that belonged to one the students who had died.  Police began an intense search for a South Korean male, 5-foot-9 wearing tan pants.  The injured were taken to Oakland's Highland Hospital.  The police arrested One at a Safeway supermarket in the Alameda South Shore Center at 12:20. 

THOSE WHO DIED:

THE INJURED:

Source: CBS News - Fatal Shooting at Oakland Religious School; Oakland Tribune - Five Dead in Shooting at Oakland University; Suspect Arrested in Alameda; Yahoo! News - Students Ran, Hid as Gunman Opened Fire in Calif.; Boston.com - CA Attack Suspect Upset About Expulsion, Teasing; Boston.com - Victims of Calif. Gunman were Young, Diverse; Yahoo! News - College Official Says She was the Target

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