Police: Ohio High-School Student Prevents Potential School Shooting

  • By Matt Jones
  • April 07, 2023

National news reports that a high-school student in Ohio has potentially prevented an active shooter incident at his school, said local officials. The 17-year-old found a bullet in a school bathroom and told a school resource officer on Monday morning. Police located and arrested a student who school officials said brought a handgun and three loaded magazines into school, said school officials according to ABC News.

“The fact that we were able to do so rests in large part on the actions of a student who did what he knew was right: He reported a suspicious finding to his school resource officer,” said Richard Markwardt, West Geauga Local Schools Superintendent, at a news conference.

Police have charged Brandon Morrissette, 18, with “attempted aggravated murder, inducing panic, and illegal possession of a deadly weapon in a school,” according to court documents as reported by ABC. Morrissette will be taken into custody, given medical and psychological evaluations at a mental health facility, and arraigned if he passes, said Geauga County Prosecutor Jim Flaiz.

Once authorities became aware of the bullet, they reviewed video footage of almost two dozen individuals who entered the bathroom and honed in on Morrissette, who was arrested on Monday morning, according to national news. The school went into lockdown during the investigation, and students were dismissed for the entire day once it was lifted.

“This was handled, in my opinion, absolutely correctly and properly from beginning to end,” said Flaiz.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning and Campus Security and Life Safety. He can be reached at [email protected]

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