TN - Multiple people shot at Austin-East High School, Knoxville, 12 Apr 2021

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Student dead, officer wounded in shooting at Austin-East Magnet High School in Knoxville


CRIME & COURTS
Student dead, officer wounded in shooting at Austin-East Magnet High School in Knoxville

A teenage student was killed and a police officer wounded Monday afternoon in a shooting at Austin-East Magnet High School in Knoxville, police and sources told Knox News.

The Knoxville Police Department confirmed the fatality in an emailed statement, and confirmed the shooting without details on its Twitter account. The shooting occurred at about 3:15 p.m. A medical examiner's vehicle left the school about 5 p.m.

The source also said one person was detained.
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One dead, one injured in shooting at Austin-East High School in Knoxville
 
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TBI says Austin-East student killed in shooting at Knoxville school | WATE 6 On Your Side

TBI reports preliminary information indicates that at approximately 3:15 p.m., the Knoxville Police Department received a report of an individual possibly armed with a gun at Austin-East Magnet High School. Upon arrival, officers located the individual inside a school restroom.

They ordered him out, but he refused to comply. As officers entered the restroom, the subject reportedly fired shots, striking an officer. One officer returned fire.
 
State Rep. Sam McKenzie, who represents the district and went to the school, said in a statement, “I am at a loss to describe my sadness as yet another horrific act of gun violence has happened in my community,” urging the community to “reclaim the sanctity of our beloved neighborhood.”

“This is the fourth unnecessary shooting involving the Austin East community this year and we must make sure we take every step and make every effort to prevent these tragedies from continuing to occur,” McKenzie aid.
Police say 1 dead, officer wounded in Tennessee school shooting


Knox County Schools restarted in-person learning in January, but Austin-East Magnet High School went back to virtual instruction briefly in February after the spate of shooting deaths of students. The school will be closed again Tuesday and Wednesday.

Speaking outside a hospital, Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon told WATE-TV that she spoke with the wounded officer and he was conscious and in good spirits.

Kincannon, a former Knox County Schools board president, spoke at a February press conference about the gun violence that took the lives of three Austin-East students less than three weeks apart this year. Two of the victims were 15, and the other was 16.

“I know that school is a safe place,” Kincannon said at that time, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel. “It’s a place where people are learning. The issues with violence are happening in the community, and it’s affecting kids when they’re outside of the school. That’s why we are focusing our efforts to protect the innocent, protect the school, protect the children and students and staff.”
Tennessee school where student was killed by police has experienced 3 other shooting deaths this year
 
Asked about the overwhelming police response to a call that came in just before afternoon dismissal, Knoxville Police Chief Eve Thomas said, “We have a student, a school incident. It’s our worst fear, an active shooter in a school.”

The shooting comes as more classrooms are reopening to students after months of remote learning during the coronavirus pandemic, which cut down the number of mass killings in the U.S. The nation has seen series of mass shootings in recent weeks, including eight people killed at three Atlanta-area massage businesses on March 16 and 10 people killed at Colorado supermarket on March 22.
UPDATE: Student fires at officers at Tennessee school, is killed


Last week, the Republican governor signed off on legislation that would make Tennessee the latest state to soon allow most adults 21 and older to carry handguns – openly or concealed -- without first clearing a background check and training. Lee backed the legislation over objections from law enforcement groups, who argued that the state’s existing permit system provided an important safeguard for knowing who should or shouldn’t be carrying a gun.

The law, which does not apply to long guns, will take effect July 1. The new measure also increases certain penalties. For example, theft of a firearm — now a misdemeanor that carries a 30-day sentence — will become a felony with a mandatory six month incarceration. It also makes exceptions for people with certain mental illnesses and criminal convictions.

When asked earlier this year whether recent mass shootings in Georgia, Colorado and others gave him any concern about timing, Lee has previously said the increased penalties mean that “we in fact will be strengthening laws that would help prevent gun crimes in the future.”
Police report multiple victims in Tennessee school shooting
 
After reading around a little, not all shootings or deaths of students happened at the school. May be connected but, too early to know.

Still, 5 students from the same high school dying in separate violent incidents (and one of them was found dead in March after having been declared missing since October) is horrific! Just because all the identified victims were black doesn't make them less important.

From what little information I've seen, I'm guessing that today's shooting was a targeted (attempted) murder/suicide, and only became news outside Knoxville because a police officer was involved.
 
When asked earlier this year whether recent mass shootings in Georgia, Colorado and others gave him any concern about timing, Lee has previously said the increased penalties mean that “we in fact will be strengthening laws that would help prevent gun crimes in the future.”

I'm sure these shooters will think twice now, knowing that there are increased penalties.
 
..Last week, the Republican governor signed off on legislation that would make Tennessee the latest state to soon allow most adults 21 and older to carry handguns – openly or concealed -- without first clearing a background check and training. Lee backed the legislation over objections from law enforcement groups, who argued that the state’s existing permit system provided an important safeguard for knowing who should or shouldn’t be carrying a gun.

The law, which does not apply to long guns, will take effect July 1. The new measure also increases certain penalties. For example, theft of a firearm — now a misdemeanor that carries a 30-day sentence — will become a felony with a mandatory six month incarceration. It also makes exceptions for people with certain mental illnesses and criminal convictions.

When asked earlier this year whether recent mass shootings in Georgia, Colorado and others gave him any concern about timing, Lee has previously said the increased penalties mean that “we in fact will be strengthening laws that would help prevent gun crimes in the future.”
Police report multiple victims in Tennessee school shooting

It doesn't take a genius to figure out how that is going to work out for them.

Coming soon from Tennessee, more gun related deaths.
 
After reading around a little, not all shootings or deaths of students happened at the school. May be connected but, too early to know.
Right, I'm assuming the students who were shot were probably killed in the community, not necessarily at school. Still, that is WAY too many young people killed by guns from one school/community. That's a lot of weight for the students to be carrying, to be losing their classmates regularly.

In 7th grade, a girl from my school was shot in a hunting accident. I knew who she was but didn't know her personally, yet all these decades later, I still am saddened and shocked by the loss. The whole school at the time was affected. I can't image having four neighborhood kids in as many months be shot and killed.

And we claim to be a country who has family values - while kids are being shot.

jmo
 
Knoxville police officer wounded in shooting at Austin-East identified

Officials have identified the Knoxville police officer who is recovering after being shot in the deadly altercation at Austin-East Magnet High School.

KPD confirmed Officer Adam Willson, a 20-year veteran of the department who currently serves as the School Resource Officer at Austin-East, is recovering after undergoing surgery for a gunshot wound sustained while responding to an armed student at Austin-East High School Monday afternoon.

Article from a couple years ago about SROs featuring officer Willson.

SROs share training, scope of job ahead of new school year to keep threats at bay | WATE 6 On Your Side
 
Right, I'm assuming the students who were shot were probably killed in the community, not necessarily at school. Still, that is WAY too many young people killed by guns from one school/community. That's a lot of weight for the students to be carrying, to be losing their classmates regularly.

In 7th grade, a girl from my school was shot in a hunting accident. I knew who she was but didn't know her personally, yet all these decades later, I still am saddened and shocked by the loss. The whole school at the time was affected. I can't image having four neighborhood kids in as many months be shot and killed.

And we claim to be a country who has family values - while kids are being shot.

jmo

My sister was a CASA mentor for a young lady she always referred to as "the teenager" (not in Tennessee) and this girl told her that many times, she didn't think she would grow up because of all the violence in her neighborhood. :(
 
Someone died, so not exactly a "happy ending" here, but not really a sad ending either. JMO.

We may or may not ever find out the reason it happened. Was he depressed, perhaps suicidal? Was he looking to take out the resource officer, and then do real damage? He did shoot at and hit the resource officer, so he wasn't fooling around. Was the officer the one who ultimately shot and killed him, before other police arrived on the scene? A bang-bang situation, where the more well trained officer got the better shot?

People will be traumatized by this. But then again, it sounds like this sort of thing happens frequently in that community.

And few will be grieving over this kid's death. Except of course for his parents, who will grieve most of all. But are they culpable in their son's death? Was the child brought up around weapons? Did he have ready access to them in the home? Will we find out that he was "troubled," yet that did not make them think twice about their behavior? Or did he acquire it on his own? It really doesn't matter, this story is a distant memory already. And it's not going to result in Any sort of change, America is America.

If they did play a role in his death, do they care or feel the extra pain that comes with responsibility? Sometimes, even more so in recent months and years, I wonder what value people really place on the lives of others, in comparison to things?
 
Officer wounded in Tennessee school wasn’t shot by student’s gun

Officer wounded in Tennessee school wasn't shot by student's gun
From the link:

"Police on Wednesday said Thompson's [the 17-year old student] gun fired once but didn't strike an officer - contradicting earlier law enforcement reports....

Police fired twice, and Thompson was shot and killed, authorities said. ...

The TBI [Tennessee Bureau of Investigation] declined comment about whether Wilson [school resource officer] was struck by an officer's bullet."
 
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