USA "Pure evil": Teenager kills four people at US school
A 14-year-old boy has opened fire at a school in the US state of Georgia, killing at least four people.
05.09.2024, 02:09
SDA
Among the fatalities were two students and two teachers, said Chris Hosey from the local investigating authority. Nine other people were injured in the attack in the town of Winder near Atlanta.
According to investigators, the shooter was a student at Apalachee High School. He has been arrested and is being questioned by the police. The police did not provide any information on a possible motive.
Sheriff: "Love will prevail"
"I want to make it clear that hate will not prevail in this county. (...) Love will prevail over what happened today," said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith. He described the crime, which took place on Wednesday morning (local time), as "pure evil".
A school policeman had confronted the 14-year-old. The teenager had probably feared that there might be an exchange of fire, lay down on the ground and gave up. Other police officers were quickly on the scene and helped. The investigators announced that the 14-year-old would be charged with murder and treated as an adult.
A classmate described the teenager as calm. "He never really said anything," Lyela Sayarath told the US broadcaster CNN. He also regularly skipped class. Another student said: "I heard screaming and stuff." She didn't think much of it at first, Janice Martinez continued. But then the noise got louder and louder.
The high school students initially sought shelter in their classrooms and eventually gathered in the school's football stadium.
Act raises questions
The schools in the district are to remain closed until the end of the week, the responsible authorities announced. There are many unanswered questions following the crime.
US media had reported that there had already been threatening phone calls the morning before the attack. The investigators did not confirm this when asked. According to Sheriff Smith, there is no direct personal connection between the shooter and the victims.
In the USA, fatal shootings are part of everyday life. Firearms are readily available in the USA and are in circulation on a large scale. Major attacks of this kind, for example at schools, supermarkets, nightclubs or large events, regularly lead to discussions about tightening gun laws - so far without any success. A substantial tightening of gun laws in the USA has been prevented by Republicans for years.
Politicians are shocked
US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill said in a statement: "Students across the country are learning to run and hide instead of learning to read and write. We can no longer accept this as normal." The Democrat again called for a ban on assault rifles.
US Vice President Kamala Harris expressed similar sentiments. "It is simply outrageous that in our country, in the United States of America, parents have to send their children to school every day and worry about whether their child will come home alive," said the Democratic presidential candidate.
Her Republican opponent Donald Trump wrote on the online platform Truth Social, which he co-founded: "These beloved children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster." The 78-year-old Trump is running against 59-year-old Harris in the presidential election on November 5.
According to the non-governmental organization Gun Violence Archive, around 11,500 people have died from gun violence in the US since the beginning of this year alone - not including suicides.
