Yet Another Mass Shooting Has Occurred At A Maryland High School

Leo Veizaga, Staff Writer

Just when you think that things could finally settle down after the Parkland incident, another mass shooting took place at Great Mills High School, in Southern Maryland earlier this Tuesday. Though details surrounding why the shooting occurred are still developing, enough information has been shown via the media to give people an idea of what transpired. Below is all the information that I have collected on the Maryland high school shooting.

 

Earlier this week, a 17-year-old gunman fired a Glock 9-millimeter gun at a 14-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl at 7:55 a.m. in a hallway at Great Mills High School in Southern Maryland on Tuesday. Though the alleged shooter died after a confrontation with a school resource officer, identified as Deputy First Class Blaine Gaskill, details about the shooting are still developing, and the investigation into the incident is still ongoing. The shooter was identified as Austin Wyatt Rollins, a student who attended Great Mills. The 16-year-old victim of Tuesday’s shooting, identified by family as Jaelynn Willey, was taken off life support Thursday evening, her family said. As for the 14-year-old boy, who was identified as Desmond Barnes, he was shot in the thigh and was discharged from the hospital Wednesday, officials confirmed.

 

Meanwhile, as school systems across the country debate arming staff, state and local officials praised the actions of the school resource officer who fired at the gunman. As Gaskill fired at Rollins, Rollins “almost simultaneously” fired his gun. Investigators are still working to determine which bullets struck which individuals, while the sheriff’s office said that the shooting was not a random act. There’s evidence that Rollins and Willey had “a prior relationship which recently ended,” according to the sheriff’s office. The St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday that the gun used by Rollins was legally owned by his father, and said gun is difficult for adults to buy under Maryland’s tough gun laws.

 

Great Mills High School in St. Mary’s County remained closed for the rest of the week, as the school community deals with the shooting’s aftermath. Schools will be closed next week for spring break, so Great Mills High is expected to reopen April 2nd.