Cops: 15-Year-Old Used Shotgun in Texas Shooting

UPDATE Mar 21, 2023 7:06 PM CDT

Police in Arlington, Texas say the weapon used in Monday's school shooting was a shotgun, and they're still trying to determine where the 15-year-old alleged shooter obtained it. The 16-year-old boy killed in the shooting outside Lamar High School was identified Tuesday as Ja’Shawn Poirier, the Dallas Morning News reports. A teen girl suffered minor injuries. At a hearing Tuesday, the suspect was ordered to remain in juvenile detention, NBC-DFW reports. He faces a murder charge that could send him to prison for up to 40 years. Defense attorney Lisa Herrick described it as a "truly tragic case." She said the boy had never been involved with the juvenile justice system before and is "understandably emotional."

Mar 20, 2023 5:35 PM CDT

A minor is in custody after police said he opened fire on students returning from spring break at a Texas high school on Monday morning. Two classmates were shot outside Lamar High School in Arlington, with the gunfire killing a male student and grazing a female student's cheek, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. The suspect and both victims are Lamar students under 17, authorities say. The suspect, who was taken to a juvenile detention center, is expected to face a capital murder charge, police say. No motive has been disclosed, but police say investigators believe the student was targeting the victims and didn't plan to shoot anybody else.

Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said the suspect ran from the scene without entering the high school and was captured within minutes, the AP reports. Police say the shots were fired minutes before two Arlington Police Department school resources officers arrived at the school. The Arlington Independent School District sent a message to families around 7:30am notifying them of the shooting and subsequent lockdown. "We prepare for incidents like this, but it is impossible to prepare for the emotion," Arlington ISD Superintendent Marcelo Cavazos said at a news conference Monday afternoon, per the Star-Telegram. "We are heartbroken."

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