Former Student Commits High School Shooting in St. Louis

On Monday morning at 9:11 am, police received a call that a school shooter had entered the Central Visual and Performing Arts High School in St. Louis, Missouri. The assailant, nineteen-year-old former student and graduate Orlando Harris carried a long-range rifle and approximately six hundred rounds of ammunition before being gunned down by police in a gun exchange. Two individuals, one teacher and one student, passed away during the shooting and several were injured.

Police arrived on the scene approximately four minutes after receiving a call that there was an active shooter on the school’s campus, and they engaged with Harris about eight minutes later, according to NBC News. Students and teachers placed the performing arts campus and adjacent area on lockdown, but Harris entered the health classroom. Alexzandria Bell, a tenth-grade student, and Jean Kuczka, a P. E. teacher, lost their lives during the shooting, and several others were injured, according to AP News.

At this time, it is unclear how Harris entered the campus, as Harris never entered the security checkpoint where security personnel were stationed, according to CNN. FBI also discovered a handwritten note from Harris in the car he drove to the campus, explaining his feelings of isolation. This is approximately the fortieth high school shooting in the United States this year.