Six Students Injured in School Shooting -- 05/20/1999

Six Students Injured in School Shooting

20 May, 1999

By Ben Anderson
CNS Staff Writer

update with new information

(CNS) – Six students sustained injuries and were hospitalized when a sophomore student allegedly fired shots in the commons area of Heritage High School in Conyers, GA just minutes before the home-room bell sounded Thursday morning.

Within ten minutes, an assistant principle subdued the alleged student perpetrator who, according to fellow students has had a "troubled past." Rockdale County School Superintendent Dr. Donald Peccia said there was "nothing in the student's file that would indicate he had been a significant problem in the past."

Peccia said the school system takes all threats seriously and "we will not tolerate anyone taking away our security."

Rockdale County Sheriff Jeff Wigington said the suspect was taken into custody by his department where he is being held. Sheriff Wigington said his department had recovered a handgun believed used in the attack. Deputies had already recovered a .22 caliber rifle used by the gunman. Officials said they have no information indicating the alleged gunman had any help. The suspect in custody is reportedly a 15-year-old sophomore at Heritage and according to other students he has been depressed over a breakup with his girlfriend.

Authorities offered no further information about the suspected gunman or his parents.

Two of the students injured in the shooting have already been released and three others admitted to a local hospital in Conyers and are in stable condition. A sixth student, Stephanie Laster, 15, is in stable condition following surgery at Grady Hospital, which specializes in trauma cases, in 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 remainder of the week. Peccia told reporters psychological counseling will be made available to students and staff on Friday and Saturday.

Sheriff Wigington said as a precautionary measure, bomb technicians were called in to comb the school property for explosives. An abandoned book-sack was detonated, but no explosives were found inside the bag.

At her weekly briefing Thursday, U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno told reporters, "We have got to make this nation safe for young people," advocating "prevention programs" and proper law enforcement as ways of doing that. Reno urged the U.S. Senate to seize the opportunity to close so-called "loopholes" in pending gun legislation, and to pass the juvenile crime bill.

Earlier this month, National Rifle Association President Charlton Heston called on federal and state officials to do a better job of enforcing existing gun laws in an effort to curb a seeming rise in youth gun violence. During an appearance on ABC's This Week, Heston said that "The problem is not the availability of guns," in the U.S., but that the Clinton Administration "refuses to prosecute" cases in which children illegal possess weapons. He noted that there have been only 13 prosecutions out of roughly 6,000 cases over the past two years in which children illegally had guns in schools and elsewhere.

The Heritage shooting occurred just hours before Vice President Al Gore cast the tie-breaking vote to pass a Senate proposal plugging what gun control advocates called "loopholes" in the laws requiring background checks on gun-show customers. The event also took place one month after the Columbine High School shooting spree in Littleton, Colorado.

President Bill Clinton called the Rockdale shooting "deeply troubling" before departing for Andrews Airforce Base on his way to Littleton, Co. where he and Mrs. Clinton will visit with the victims of the Columbine shooting.

In his weekly radio address, Clinton fired soft shots at violence in the entertainment industry for contributing to today's culture. Some of his more vocal supporters and campaign finance contributions, however, come from Hollywood's movers and shakers. Clinton has yet to experience the backlash felt by former Vice President Dan Quayle who, seven years ago Wednesday, sustained a deluge of media criticism for criticizing then prime-time show Murphy Brown for promoting an attitude against the importance of fathers.

Quayle, appearing on Fox News Channel's Hannity and Colmes Wednesday night, pointed to the Columbine shooting as one of many factors in today's society which lend support to his contentions.

| In Depth Archives |