Two students are dead, while another was injured after a shooting took place at a Nashville, Tennessee, high school on Wednesday, Jan. 22.
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According to NewChannel 5 Nashville, the 17-year-old shooter shot two students in Antioch High School’s cafeteria before turning the gun on himself. Both the shooter, who has been identified as Solomon Henderson, and a female student, Joslin Corea Escalante, died.
The other student injured in the shooting was transported to a nearby hospital, where they are in stable condition. They sustained a facial injury from a fall and were wearing his glasses.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and Tennessee Highway Patrol responded to the incident alongside the Metro Nashville Police Department. Antioch High School has approximately 2,000 students.
“The investigation is ongoing,” Metro Nashville Police Department Chief John Drake explained. “We are not sure if it was targeted or intended for other people. Our homicide detectives are actively investigating this.”
Henderson reportedly went into one of the restrooms to retrieve his weapon around 11 a.m. The active shooter call came in at 11:11 a.m.
“We know at 11:09 a.m. a person who has been identified as a 17-year-old started firing shots into the cafeteria,” Metro Nashville Police Department spokesperson Don Aaron also said. “One female student has died. The other is in stable condition at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.”
Two Student Resource Officers Were in the Tennessee High School When the Shooting Took Place
NewsChannel 5 Nashville further reported that there were two student resource offices at the Tennessee high school when the shooting occurred.
The high school also has protective film on the glass and video security to detect guns. Metal detectors were not installed in the high school.
“The investigation is ongoing as to a motive,” Drake continued to share. “There are some materials on the internet that’s under investigation. We will continue the investigation that will go into the wee hours of the morning.”
Metro Nashville Public Schools Director of Schools Adrienne Battle, the former principal of Antioch High School, released a statement about the shooting.
“As a former principal of Antioch High School, this loss is deeply personal to me in and throughout our community,” she said. “As you all can imagine, this is a heartbreaking event for all of us here in Nashville and in Metro Nashville Public Schools.”
“We lost student in a tragic incident and the life of a peer,” she then added. “Forever changing the lives of everyone who knew them. We are grateful that no additional lives were lost though another is being treated for injuries,” she added. “School staff followed emergency protocols. Their actions were heroic on a dark day.”