The purpose of this document is to analyze the circumstances surrounding violent incidents for improved safety or procedures. As a lifelong educator, school protection officer and school safety advocate I feel this is important and welcome other perspectives.
As more information about the Apalachee School shooting becomes available, it’s crucial for all schools to review and assess their own practices. By learning from this tragic event, we must strive to make necessary improvements. Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to the families affected by this terrible act.
Important Details
The Apalachee High School shooting occurred on September 4, 2024, in Winder, Georgia. The 14 year old student killed four people in the attack, two students and two teachers. A timeline of the events of the incident are detailed at this link and listed below.
- The suspect was questioned the previous year about online threats directed at school. Father and suspect were interviewed.
- The suspect rode to school on a school bus while concealing a rifle and knife in poster board and his backpack.
- During class at 9:45am, he asked to go to the office to speak to someone.
- Student texted his mom, “I’m Sorry, mom”. His mother responded by calling to warn the school at 9:50am, the call lasted about 10 minutes. She asked administrators to check her son, they immediately began looking for him.
- An unkown person called Apalachee school that morning warning of shootings at five schools, with Apalachee School being the first.
- SRO did not find the student in the classroom he should have been in.
- Minutes later the 14 year old shooter enters the hallway with a rifle looking for easy targets.
- He was unable to gain entry into his classroom as one of the students reportedly refused to open the locked door. He looked for targets elsewhere.
- Panic button technology alerts authorities at 10:20am.
- Confusion from two students have similar names delayed the identification of the shooter, but two minutes into the shooting they were able to ID him. One student had already been shot.
- The suspect surrendered at 10:30am after an SRO confronted him.
- Four people were dead in two different hallways at Apalachee School.
- At 10:38am a text message to all parents went out indicating they are in a hard lockdown.
- Around 11:45 am, the Suspects aunt called the sheriff’s office worried that her nephew was involved in the shooting. She was aware of the apology text message to his parents.
Additional information released since the event:
- The suspects father bought the rifle for his son as a Christmas gift, months after being questioned about his involvement in school threats.
- The suspect had drawings detailing his planned attack.
- Other students reported him to be a withdrawn student who’s attendance was poor.
- The suspect posted a photo of the school shooter from Parkland, Florida on the wall at home.
- This article indicates that the mother planned to take the suspect to see a counselor, away from school. But, the father argued with her about the suspect’s access to guns. The plan eventually fell through.
What can we learn?
Parents take notice
Absolutely, parental awareness and responsibility are crucial. Parents need to be proactive in addressing their children’s mental health issues and ensuring firearms are securely stored. Ignoring these responsibilities can have tragic consequences, as we’ve seen with parents facing felony charges due to negligence. It’s essential for parents to stay engaged and vigilant to help prevent such incidents.
Threat Assessment Team?
This student exhibited several concerning behaviors, including plans of an attack, withdrawn behavior, poor attendance, and an infatuation with school shootings. Unfortunately, these warning signs were missed. Behavior threat assessment teams are designed to identify such behaviors. While I am unsure if this school had a threat assessment team, it is possible that one could have prevented the shooting. Although it may seem like a stretch, the goal of threat assessment is to prevent violence and provide support for students in need. The challenges schools face in establishing these teams include resources, personnel, and funding. All schools should have a threat assessment team, with financial support provided by state or federal government. Locknow details threat assessment teams here.
Keep the doors locked!
The suspect was unable to re-enter his classroom, so he sought other targets. The teacher’s practice of keeping the door locked saved many lives in that classroom. It makes one wonder what the outcome might have been if all classroom doors had been locked during the shooting. Locking classroom doors is becoming a common and highly encouraged practice in schools. These locked doors have proven effective in keeping students safe, as perpetrators typically avoid the effort of breaking into a classroom, preferring easier targets.
Panic button technology is a must
This incident is another example of panic button technology providing live saving communication. It’s not a gimmick, it’s a necessity. Locknow offers the most affordable technology and provides you a free opportunity to use the app. A no risk, free trial is available, email team@locknowapp.com. Saving seconds can save lives.
Hidden Weapon
It’s concerning how easily weapons can be concealed and brought into schools, as it is described that the rifle was hidden in the student’s backpack. This highlights a significant vulnerability in school security. Preventing such incidents ideally involves stopping the weapon from ever entering the school premises. It’s understandable to see how a student could manage this, given the simplicity of the method. Strengthening preventive measures and improving early detection are crucial steps in enhancing school safety.
SRO Response
Based on the article, there was an 8-10 minute gap between the call to authorities and the resource officer confronting the suspect at Apalachee School. While this might seem brief, other incidents have shown that many casualties can occur in such a short time. The exact duration before a lockdown was announced remains unclear, making it difficult to fully assess the on-campus response. However, it is evident that the school resource officer performed well upon arrival, successfully stopping the attack.
The time it took for the SRO or the campus to be notified of the shooting is still unclear. We would really like to know the time transpired between shooting started and classroom doors being closed and locked. That is the key information. They did have access to panic button technology which undoubtedly improved the response. Understanding the time taken to notify the entire campus is vital in evaluating the overall response. Although we don’t have a timeline on when the panic button alerts were issued, we are confident that this saved lives.
Where does the responsibility lie?
The suspect’s father is rightfully included in the charges, as his obvious negligence contributed to this shooting. The warning signs were clear and should not have been ignored. He must be held accountable for his lack of action and parenting. Both parents appear to have been aware that their son had serious mental health issues, an infatuation with school shootings, and access to guns. Ultimately, the father and the suspect carry the most responsibility.
What other factors can we learn from? Reach out to us at team@locknowapp.com.
For a free trial using Locknow’s panic button technology, email us at team@locknowapp.com. Guaranteed to be the most affordable safety technology.