Georgia School Shooting on Columbine "Anniversary" -- 05/20/1999

Georgia School Shooting on Columbine "Anniversary"

20 May, 1999

By Dorothea Cooke
CNS Managing Editor

(CNS) - One month to the day after the shootings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, a gunman opened fire this morning inside a "common area" at a high school in suburban Atlanta, Georgia injuring six students.

The six injured students are in stable condition at a nearby hospital, said school Superintendent Don Peccia. None of the injuries are considered life-threatening Peccia added.

The shooting occurred at 8:03 a.m. at Heritage High School, located on Grenade Road in Conyers, about 30 miles east of Atlanta.

An official at Heritage High School told CNS the shooting happened before the start of classes, that everything is "under control," and that students have been dismissed for the day. Today was the final day of classes for seniors at Heritage.

The gunman is reportedly a 15-year-old sophomore at Heritage, and was taken into custody by the Rockdale County Sheriff's Department said spokesman Jeff Wigington. The gunman had two weapons, a .22-caliber rifle and a .22-caliber revolver, according to District Attorney Richard Read.

There are no metal detectors at the school, which is fairly new – built to accommodate the rapid suburban growth in the Atlanta area, but it does employ a campus policeman and surveillance cameras. Heritage High has a student population of 1,300 students.

Several students said they initially thought it was a prank until they saw the gun and students injured and bleeding.

"Some guy was in front of the girls' bathroom in the common area, just firing off shots," sophomore Bill Price told reporters.

One witness, senior William Britt, said the gunman acted as if he would shoot himself, too. "He put the revolver in his mouth, but he didn't shoot himself," Britt said.

Students said the gunman fired four to six shots into a crowd of students, then ran out a side door and surrendered to Assistant Principal Cecil Brinkley.

President and Mrs. Clinton are traveling to Littleton, Colorado, today to meet privately with families who lost loved ones, then visit with the Columbine student body and rescue workers at a nearby high school. Before leaving the White House, Clinton told reporters he found the incident in Georgia, "deeply troubling to me, as it is to all Americans. We thank God that the injuries to the students do not seem to be life-threatening."

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