2 wounded in shooting at California high school

[LadyBlue]

At least two people were shot at a high school in Taft, Calif., Thursday morning and the shooter--believed to be a student armed with a shotgun-- was taken into custody, officials say.

Kern County Fire Department said one victim refused treatment at the scene and the other was transported to Kern County Medical Center. One of the victims was a student, the Associated Press reported. The victims' ages were not immediately released.

23ABC news reported that the station received phone calls from people inside Taft Union High School who were hiding in closests. The station reported that authorities are sweeping the school. The situation is considered stable and students were evacuated to the football field.

City manager's assistant Debra Elliott says the shooting was reported shortly after 9 a.m. She did not provide further details.

Taft is a city west of Bakersfield with a population of about 7,000.
www.foxnews.com/us/2013/01/10/2-shot-at-california-high-school/

[LadyBlue]

Taft Union High School shooting suspect believed to be a student

Two students were taken to hospitals after a shooting Thursday morning at Taft Union High School, a Kern County sheriff’s official said.

Sheriff's spokesman Ray Pruitt said one victim was flown to Bakersfield for treatment. Officials were still trying to determine if the second student had been struck or was suffering from a stress-related ailment, he said, adding that the conditions of both students were unknown.

Pruitt confirmed that the suspected shooter was in custody and was also believed to be a student, and that a shotgun had been recovered from a building on campus where the shooting occurred.
latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/01/taft-high-school-shooting-suspect-student.html

[LadyBlue]

Would SOMEONE please explain to me how it was that a student could walk directly into a high school with a shotgun? Especially in light of what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary school. There must be an answer to this issue, but what the fuck is it?

[LadyBlue]

Witness: Calif. student smirked while firing shots

Morgan Alldredge had just finished her oceanography test when a classmate she knows well suddenly walked in the open door to her science class with a shotgun.

"He didn't say anything. He just shot right away," said the 16-year-old junior who was sitting by the doorway as the terrifying events unfolded Thursday morning at Taft Union High School, about 120 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

The round struck a boy in the chest and shoulder. The shooter then quickly pumped the gun Alldredge identified as a Winchester 12-gauge and immediately fired another round at students trying to flee out a back door.

"He had a kind of disturbing smile on his face. Kind of a smirk," said Alldredge, who estimated she was about 5 feet from the gunman. He then looked at her and mouthed the words "not you" as she sat frozen at her desk, Alldredge said. "All I want is Jacob," he said.

That boy, Alldredge's former boyfriend, was hiding behind a desk in the classroom.

"He popped his head up and apologized for bullying him," she said. "He kept saying, 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry.' He was crying."

Seeing the boy's emotion seemed to change everything for the gunman, Alldredge said. His shoulders "sort of slumped" and he began listening to the teacher, Ryan Heber, who was telling him to put down the gun, she said.

When he did, Kim Fields, a school official who hurried to the scene when gunshots were reported, grabbed the teen in a bear hug and sat him on the ground, Alldredge said.
www.kait8.com/story/20560722/student-tells-teacher-i-dont-want-to-shoot-you

[LadyBlue]

16-year-old charged as adult in Taft classroom shooting

A 16-year-old student suspected of critically wounding another student with a shotgun at Taft Union High School was charged Monday as an adult with two counts of attempted murder, Kern County prosecutors said.

He also was charged with three counts of assault with a firearm in last Thursday's attack. The teen had tried to shoot a second student and missed before a teacher was able to persuade him to stop, authorities said.

Prosecutors weighed several factors in their decision to try him as an adult, said Mark Pafford, chief deputy district attorney.

"The fact that a firearm was used, the severity of injuries to [the victim], the evident premeditation and deliberation and the age of the defendant" were considered, Pafford said.

The teen is expected to be arraigned Monday afternoon at Kern County Superior Court, Pafford said.

Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood said last week the suspect planned the attack the night before and used a shotgun owned by his brother. A school surveillance camera captured the boy as he entered a side entrance to the campus "trying to conceal the shotgun," the sheriff said.

The video "showed he was nervous," Youngblood said.
latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2013/01/kern-county-teen-shooter-charged-as-an-adult.html

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