A school shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, left three children and one teacher dead, with the gunman identified as a 16-year-old former student of the institution.
When the teenage gunman began firing indiscriminately inside a special education classroom, a teacher bravely attempted to intervene by wrestling with him, while a parent whose two daughters attend the school entered with a handgun and shot the suspect dead.
Bend Police Chief Mike Crantz identified the shooter as Griffin John II during a press conference on the 16th (local time). John was previously a special education student at the school.
The incident occurred on the afternoon of the 15th. According to police, John fired shots at a red pickup truck before entering the school grounds. The driver escaped unharmed and called 911, while John shot through the glass of the school entrance door to gain entry.
Investigators found that John discharged up to 15 rounds inside the special education classroom. A female teacher threw her phone at him, tackled him to the floor, and tried to disarm him.
Caleb Giamanco, 36, whose two daughters attend the school, rushed into the classroom upon hearing gunshots. He shot and killed John, who was still struggling with the teacher.
Police stated that Giamanco used a .40-caliber handgun legally stored in his vehicle. Officers arrived at the scene roughly three minutes after the initial 911 dispatch and confirmed the shooter was dead inside the building.
The tragic event claimed the lives of three children aged 5, 8, and 11, along with teacher Megan Lambert. Another 7-year-old child and a second teacher were hospitalized for their injuries.
The gunman used a Maverick 88 pump-action 12-gauge shotgun, and approximately 44 shotgun rounds were found in his bag at the time of his death. The firearm was reportedly purchased by the shooter’s mother.
The gunman’s mother, Shontai Nickerson, apologized to the victims and their families, stating, ‘I miss my child. I am truly sorry. I wish there was something I could have done.’ Police are currently investigating the motive and how the suspect obtained the firearms. U.S. President Donald Trump praised Giamanco, who subdued the gunman, calling him a ‘great hero.’
