Shooting at Kentucky High School Leaves Several Injured

UPDATE: 2 Dead After Shooting at Kentucky High School

Two students were killed and 12 others were shot at Marshall County High School.

  • By Sydny Shepard
  • January 23, 2018

[UPDATE: January 23, 2018 1:00 p.m.]

At a press conference, Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin confirmed two fatalities and 12 gunshot victims in the shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, Kentucky. 

Kentucky State Police said that at 7:57 a.m., a 15-year-old male shooter entered the school through its front entrance to a commons area where he immediately started shooting a handgun. The first call to 911 came in at 7:59 a.m. and police arrived at the scene at 8:06 a.m. The shooter was apprehended at the scene in a non-violent manner, according to police.

Kentucky State Police did mention that there was a Student Resource Officer on the campus, but did not say if that SRO came into contact with the shooter.

Of those 14 who were shot, one 15-year-old female student died at the scene and six others were flown to the nearest level one trauma center. At the hospital another 15-year-old male student succumbed to his wounds. The remaining wounded were taken to the nearest hospital.

Five other students were injured during the incident, but did not have gunshot wounds.

The status of the injured students are not known.

The FBI, ATF and a number of local police departments and sheriff's offices have responded to the incident, according to police. The FBI will help police process the crime scene on campus.

Kentucky State Police Commissioner Rick Sanders applauded the response of police and students, saying the students knew exactly what to do as a result of their active shooter training.

"This was a disrupted incident," Sanders said. "There's no telling what damage could've been done had we not intervened."

The original story below.

A large police response was seen this morning at Marshall County High School in Kentucky this morning after reports of gunfire on the campus.

What happens remains to be unclear, but Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin tweeted out that there was at least one person dead and many other injured.

The Marshall County Tribune-Courier, the local newspaper, posted on Facebook just a little after 8 a.m. central time that there were reports of shots fired at the school. The newspaper also posted that a student inside the school witnessed shots fired and saw at least two people injured.


Police have confirmed the shooter is in custody and that one person has died as a result of the shooting. It was unclear if the deceased was a student at the school. 

This is the second instance of gunfire on a school campus in two days. Yesterday, a 15-year-old girl was shot and injured at Italy High School in Texas.

This is a developing story. Check back later for more information.

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