A 15-year-old boy was shot by his 14-year-old classmate at a Nebraska high school on Tuesday — the latest in a spate of gun violence at US schools this year, authorities said.
Gunfire erupted inside of Omaha Northwest High School around 12:25 p.m., prompting the campus and other schools in the area to be placed on lockdown.
The victim was rushed to a local hospital where he is in stable condition, Omaha Police Department Deputy Chief Sherie Thomas told reporters in an update Tuesday afternoon. He had initially been listed in critical condition.
The male suspect was arrested around 1 p.m. off school property after a pursuit.
“We believe this to be an isolated incident between two students,” Thomas said, adding that there is no additional threat to the public.
The school’s lockdown was lifted at 1:30 p.m. Students were released room by room and sent to an area near the football field, WOWT reported.
By 3 p.m., Omaha Public Schools announced a majority of students had been reunited with their families at the school.
All classes and activities have been canceled for Wednesday, officials said. Students will return as normal on Thursday.
“Based on initial information, everyone at the school responded in an appropriate way. We are especially grateful for the swift action by local and state law enforcement to get to the scene and also secure a suspect,” Gov. Jim Pillen said in a statement.
“We know this was traumatic for everyone at the school and the parents of students at Northwest,” he added.
The shooting comes less than a week after 14-year-old Colt Gray allegedly gunned down two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in northern Georgia.
Colt and his father, Colin Gray, who purchased his son the AR-15-style rifle used in the massacre as a Christmas gift, have both been arrested and charged with murder.
On Friday, 16-year-old Jaylen Prince allegedly shot and killed 15-year-old classmate Warren Curtis Grant inside of a bathroom during a fight at a Maryland high school. The shooter was arrested at a nearby apartment complex after fleeing the school and charged with murder.
