One student was killed and eight others injured in a shooting at a K-12 school south of Denver, Colo. on Tuesday.
Two shooters, both male students at the school, are in custody after a shooting at STEM School Highlands Ranch, a charter school in Highlands Ranch, Colo., according to Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock. One of the shooters is an adult and the other is a juvenile, Spurlock said. He said that police have secured the school.
The deceased student is an 18-year-old man, the Douglas County Sheriff’s office announced on Twitter. His immediate family has been notified, although his identity has not yet been released.
Spurlock said that all the victims are 15 years old or older, and that “several” are in critical condition. Five of the student victims were brought to Littleton Adventist Hospital; three have been discharged but two are in serious condition, the hospital said. Two male students were also brought to Sky Ridge Medical Center, where they are in stable condition, according to a spokesperson for the center. Another victim was treated and released from Children’s Hospital Colorado South Campus in Highlands Ranch, according to a spokesperson quoted in CNN. The youngest victim is 15 years old.
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Spurlock said that the two shooters walked “deep inside the school” and started attacking students at around 2 p.m. People in the school “almost immediately” called the dispatch center, and police arrived at the school about two minutes later. Undersheriff Holly Nicholson-Kluth said that police were on the scene “almost immediately” because there is a police substation a block from the school. She said that police could hear gunshots as they entered the school.
Police have also secured a car believed to belong to the suspects in the school’s parking lot, and search warrants have been issued for their homes, Spurlock said.
Nicholson-Kluth said that the shooting is believed to have started in the middle school.
Nicholson-Kluth said that crimes like this are uncommon in Highlands Ranch.
“This is a good community. It’s usually very quiet. Low crime rate. So this is unusual for us,” said Nicholson-Kluth.
Highlands Ranch is a suburb of Denver, and the school is roughly 14 miles from the city center. The school’s website says that about 1,800 students attend the school and that it is a K-12 school.
The school is roughly eight miles from Columbine High School, where 12 students and one teacher were murdered on April 20, 1999. Several days before the 20th anniversary of the Columbine shooting, schools throughout the Denver area were closed after a young woman, who was said to be infatuated with the Columbine attack, threatened schools in the area. The woman later committed suicide.
Jennifer Brown, a reporter from the Colorado Sun, tweeted a picture taken at the crowded parent reunification center.
The White House released a statement about the shooting on Tuesday night.
“Our prayers are with the victims, family members, and all those affected by today’s shooting at STEM School Highlands Ranch in Littleton, Colorado,” the statement said. “Tragically, this community and those surrounding it know all too well these hateful and horrible acts of violence. The White House has been in communication with state and local officials, and the President has been briefed and continues to monitor the ongoing situation. We offer our full support to local law enforcement and first responders and thank them for their heroism.”
This is a developing story. Check back here for updates.
Write to Tara Law at [email protected].