E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSA California student with a shotgun opened fire in a classroom, wounding one classmate, says Kern County, Calif., Sheriff Donny Youngblood.
Updated at 4:45 p.m. ET: A high school teacher and a campus supervisor talked a student into surrendering after he opened fire in a classroom, wounding a classmate at a school in California's southern San Joaquin Valley on Thursday morning, police said.
The student had intentional targets when he brought a 12-gauge shotgun into the Taft Union High School classroom halfway through the first period, Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood said in a news conference. The incident happened around 9 a.m. local time and students were evacuated to the football field, NBC affiliate KGET of Bakersfield reported.
The shooter targeted and hit a 16-year-old student in the classroom of 28, and missed firing on another student he named, Youngblood said. The wounded victim was airlifted to the hospital, where the 16-year-old remains in critical, but stable, condition.
The teacher in the classroom, along with a campus supervisor, "engaged" the shooter with conversation as students were evacuating, according to Youngbood. At one point the shooter put the shotgun down, and officers were able to take him into custody. The gunman's identity has not been released, however he was described as a 16-year-old male student who lives near the school, NBCLosAngeles.com reported.
"We want to commend the teacher and a campus supervisor to bring this to a quick resolution," Taft Police Chief Ed Whiting said. "They did a great job in protecting the kids."
The teacher, who has not been named by officials, was grazed by a pellet to the head, Youngblood said. A second student suffered minor injuries while falling over a table during the evacuation, and a third student was taken to a hospital for possible hearing loss from the gun blast sound, Youngblood said, according to Reuters.
The shooter had as many as 20 shotgun rounds in his pocket, but it's not clear how many rounds were fired, Youngblood said.
Police say the suspect reportedly had "a dialogue" with the victim before Thursday morning, NBCLosAngeles.com reported.
KGET reported that at least three ambulances and a medevac helicopter had been sent to the scene.
Earlier, Taft police told NBC News they responded to the situation and the school was on lockdown. Deputies conducted a room-to-room search, according to KGET. The Kern County Sheriff's Department told NBCLosAngeles.com the shooting happened on the second floor of a science building on campus.
The school will be closed Friday, as authorities continue the investigation, KGET reported. Officials say the high school usually has an armed police officer, but the officer was not on site at the time.
Taft is in California's southern San Joaquin Valley, about 30 miles southwest from Bakersfield.
Thursday's shooting comes just a month after the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., which claimed the lives of 20 children and six adult staffers and renewed a nationwide debate about gun control.
In February 2010, a math teacher tackled a gunman who wounded two middle school students in Littleton, Colo., just miles away from the scene of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre.
Stay informed with the latest headlines; sign up for our newsletter
NBCLosAngeles.com's Jonathan Lloyd and Nyree Arabian, as well as Reuters, contributed to this report.
Leave a Comment:
Gun laws are a good idea, but i live near NYC i can go to any street corner and get a gun what laws can stop that?
Can you pick me up some ammo? Law-abiding citizens cannot seem to find any. Not inferring you are a criminal but if someone was selling guns and ammo here on the street corner there would be a line. Profit ideas for those with access. If you can get ammo or mags then sit outside Gander Mountain or Academy Sports and sell in the parking lot. You will make a fortune.
Just thankful I started reloading six months ago
How many people know that nobama sends his kids to a school with armed guards? Remember how the left thought that idea from the nra was crazy ? Are they hypocrites or ignorant ? My guess, both !
They are called the Secret Service, and by law it is SOP.
The only ignorance is on your part.
Mesa, the land of fruits, nuts, & flakes...
Yes, I think Steve would be a lot like Alex Jones.
http://www.upworthy.com/angry-gun-advocate-loses-it-live-on-cnn-in-the-most-bizarre-interview-ever
There are those who have opinons and then there are those who don't think and just spout rhetoric. To imply that a US President, any US President, would not have their family undrer protection at all times is simply the definition of "can't see the forest for the trees".
SAbot only if it's more than 3 or children are killed, okay, stupid? But it is what 9 shootings since Giffords and you think a knee-jerk reaction is too much?
Screw Giffords..tired about hear her name. She didn't care before she was shot. How many shootings before the six people with her were killed. Can you name any of them?
I guess the Bimbo was called Gabby for a reason
She was shot with a pistol not an assault rifle.
You have your answer Terri. These are the people who we are supposed to have sympathy for about taking away some of their perceived gun rights.
He probably is a lot like this guy...(not the interviewer)
http://www.upworthy.com/angry-gun-advocate-loses-it-live-on-cnn-in-the-most-bizarre-interview-ever
I blame it on the WWE
The people against gun, I dare you to post in your yard, "A Gun Free Zone"
@Larry.... Lol
These anti-gun nuts don't realize it would only take one minute for an intruder to kill their whole family. It would take the police many minutes to get there. By then it's too late.
Before we jump the gun and claim it to be another mass shooting, wait and see what report comes out. I bet it was a piece of s*$& gang member shooting at another. After all, it is near Bakersfield.
It would be really great if people would wait for the details to come out of this story - And folks, you know, there were armed guards at Columbine - and we had armed military people at Fort Hood - and we had armed policemen in the police department shooting the other week - so - I'm sitting here smirking about all the comments about arming teachers - My daughter is a teacher - she said if you arm teachers - the perps will just come in with something more high powered, i.e., hand grenades or stuff like that - You are not going to prevent shootings - you need to prevent assault weapons and military type weapons from being purchased - only to be stolen or sold as straw purchases, etc. I would be willing to bet this was a hand-gun incident - not an assault weapon or military type weapon shooting or more people would have been injured...Wait to hear details before you make half-assed comments.
Here we go again. It just does not stop.
Maybe the students should make a fashion statement by wearing dragon body armour school along with kevlar helmets and carrying Glocks or AR15's to prevent anymore shootings. Can you imagine the chaos that would be like if trouble flared out in the cafeteria.
ARe we all watching what our country is turning in to? We fought so hard for our freedom in the beginning and now we will eventually piece by piece lose it all due to abuse of a small few. I can't imagine what the oldest generation of our country thinks as they sit and watch what we are doing. Proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free may not be a song to sing in our near future. There is no fear in our country to commit heinous crimes, no shame for image we portray, no self love to want to do better for the bigger picture, only selfish self serving what will benefit me now now now!! Spoiled are we?
So where were the armed guards? Armed Teachers? Oh that's right, they weren't needed since schools are "Gun Free Zones" and California has some of the most strict gun laws in the nation. So either the system doesn't work OR this never happened. Could it be that maniacs and criminals don't care about the stupid sticker on the door? Perhaps that's why we call them CRIMINALS!
So what do we do? Disarm the nation and overturn the 2nd Ammendment? People are buying out gun stores as we speak, so should we also overturn the 4th Ammendment so we can search thier homes? People will have to be questioned if they own a gun, so the 5th Ammendment will also have to go. I have heard of people making bomb threats as well, so should we also overturn the 1st Ammendment? Heck, we can just throw all the Bill of Rights in the garbage. After that, we can all move to N. Korea!
Why does nobody ever point out that FBI statistics show that the violent crime rate has decreased by 50% in the US in the past 20 years? The murder rate has decreased by over 50%. Why is the media and politicians keeping this practically a secret? Do "they" want us to be afraid for some reason?
Because it shatters their argument.
Hey, what do you know? Doesn't California have strict gun control as far as high capacity mags and stuff? Didn't stop this shooting. GO FIGURE!!!!!!!!!! The left wants guns out of our hands to maintain power over us!!! I say come and get um its not going to be easy for you!!!!
sure TDL... no problem. Just petition your teabagger controlled republican Congress to spend another couple of billion to hire and protect 125,000 K-12 schools in this nation. Oh wait! That doesn't include the college and universities. Better make that 5 or 6 billion. They should go for that... after all, it's not like it's a hurricane disaster relief request.
The local voters can vote on the funding of a police officer in their local school, and fund it with their local school tax.
Congress not required.
Bigot.
I do believe that the NRA is willing to train people as well and they would fund it! As well how many unemployed veterans do we have right now? Obama wants job creation well there it is! People would think twice about shooting up a school if there was a Marine there. Or maybe they wouldn't get the chance to think cause they would be dead before they could shoot! PRober your a desk guy aren't you from the city? Ha!
Likely the product of California's liberal dumbed down education system......... he obviously couldn't comprehend the "NO GUNS" sticker on the door.
If I take a Ruger .22 rifle and assault a child with it,it's an assault rifle you goddamned cowards.if you're scared to live in your own country,I think it says more about you than it does liberals or the gub'ment.
If someone jams a pen in your eye, they have assaulted you with an assault weapon.
Liberals ignore truth and logic and make up their own words.
When was the last mass shooting at a gun range ? Libtard logic (emotion based, history hating) says thats the most dangeruos place in the world. So why no shootings there libtards?
There was a famous pro gun blogger that was killed in his gun store in NC just the other day. With a GUN!
explain that. Gun store owner, gun owner, and dead.
Folks like yourself show your lack of intelligence to be able to debate a subject without the name calling and stupid remarks. I hate to say it, but your just a waste of anyones breath to try and have a conversation with.
@Steve Travis
To answer your question: April 8, 2009
Google the phrase "Mom kills son then self at GUN RANGE" for details: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30109090/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/t/mom-kills-son-then-self-shooting-range/
You can also see the footage in the HBO documentary, "Gun Fight" which released in 2011.
Google: fact checking wingnut batcrap craziness since 1998
only two shot at high school? probably student on student, and drug/gang related
Due to California's ban on assault rifles the shooter probably used a single shot firearm of some type. See, gun control does work.
uh, no. this shooter will probably be shown to have been intent on killing a particular individual...not everyone. I'd put money on it that says the gun still has bullets in it.
It was intended as sarcasm T.
Not sure what the weapon was, but that won't matter. The hand wringers will start wailing louder about Assault Weapons and Hi-Cap magazines...... Hmmmm....wait a minute...CA already has the toughest laws regarding AR15 type weapons, and has BANNED, for, I believe, at least a decade, hi capacity magines. With many, many 10's of millions of hi-caps in circulation in the US now, banning them is like, well, banning cats and saying nobody will ever get scratched again... Pure unadulterated FOLLY!!
I thought California has strict gun laws to keep this from happening. What went wrong?
they had armed guards in Columbine. Look what good it did... duh.....The kid who just murdered ll those innocent children stole his mom's cache, killed her and then crashed the school window... cars are murder weapons, right? ( eyes rolling)
do what we do for cars (with added bonuses):
take tests, full background check, close gun show loopholes, register your gun, have a safe for your gun, get insurance on the damn thing too.
and then be able to sue the pants off the the manufacturers every time there's a homicide.
ban high capacity clips.... if you need 30 rounds to kill a deer, you suck as a shot and shouldn't be allowed to own one..
done.
Pound sand.
Done.
thats just stupid. we don't sue toyota everytime someone crashes one or runs over pedestrians with it.
btw, there is no such thing as a gunshow loophole. The vendors are required to have the proper FederalFirearmsLicense as well as follow any requirements of the state in which the show is held. They do the required background checks unless the customer has a concealed carry permit, in which case, the background check would have already ben done. The only "loophole" at a gunshow is the exchange between two private citizens (not necessarily at a gunshow), neither of which are going to do a background check on the other.
Second Amendment has nothing to do with hunting or target practice shooting. This notion that banning high capacity clips will solve problems of the deranged or drug heads killing people is asinine. If a person is determined to kill someone do you think taking weapons away from Law abiding citizens will stop them? Will it stop the drug dealers and gang bangers from killing people? Will it stop the rapists? Will it stop the burglars? Will it stop the mentally ill? Will it stop the government from banning all weapons and taking away other constitutionally guaranteed rights?
This has nothing to do with hunting (most liberals know this and are using "hunting" as a diversion). If you know how to read, pickup a Constitution for a good explanation. Or, you can go to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Svxjz6Aab8&feature=youtu.be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9nmsmK_apg
T Diddy... No registration, no background check, no waiting period. And it's "neither of which is"...moron. Assumed 'neither one'... singular.
Rick, I also didn't capitalize the first letter of the first words of the first three sentences in my post. I suppose that makes me an ignoramoose.
Some very thoughtful posts here. Like the BB gun comment and the idiots who don't seem to know the difference between defending your home with a shotgun and being bipolar with an assault rifle. Knee jerk reaction by the left? How about knee jerk reaction about the right to bear arms. We HAVE the right to bear arms, but you don't get to have a stinger missle, or a laws rocket, or a .50 caliber mounted on your redneck Dodge. Anyone that has to kill Bambi with an assault rifle needs to take up bowling to get rid of their anger. Or are pinheads who throw objects at pins viewed as cannibals? Yeah, never mind, leave bowling to bowlers.
Maybe they need a bigger "GUN FREE ZONE" sticker on the door.
Sabre, I absolutely love your wit sweetheart, whatever you do don't lose it. K? BTW, this is the former midnightridr. I have re-friended you. Please accept.
Biden has announced that in consideration of this recent shooting it is obvious we need to ban School.
Ban byebyeden, hellory, and ohbumma...
It's Billary, or Hitlery man
Ban public schools... they kill innocent people...