Boy Allegedly Shoots Middle School Teacher (then shot himself)

[sabra]

Source: CBS News/AP

Student Hospitalized After Gunshot Missed Teacher, Then Shot Himself In Head, Louisiana Police Say

(AP) The Lafourche Parish Sheriff's Office says a student shot himself after shooting at a teacher and missing.

Sgt. Lesley Peters, a sheriff's office spokeswoman, says the student shot at the teacher inside Larose-Cut Off Middle School on Monday, then went behind a stairwell and shot himself in the head.

She says the student has been taken to a hospital.


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/05/18/national/main5022658.shtml?tag=topHome;topStories

[TheWraith]

1. If I were them, I'd start investigating that teacher right now.

Kids don't usually attempt murder suicides without a lot of reason.

[HopeHoops]

2. Agreed.

A bad grade on a test rarely leads to such things.

[shadowknows69]

10. I'd agree with you back in my day, but not so sure now.

[Blue_Tires]

3. i dunno...the kid just could have been a budding sociopath...

lashing out at authority...

[ingac70]

4. Like Columbine?

:sarcasm:

[TheWraith]

7. This isn't like Columbine.

That duo spent years being systematically isolated and rejected by society, and they lashed out in a broad way. Also, they were teenagers. This is a middle school student specifically targeting one teacher in particular before trying to kill himself.

[Raskolnik]

18. "That duo spent years being systematically isolated and rejected by society"

No, they didn't. Harris was a sociopath, and Klebold was an unbalanced follower. The myth that they were victims of bullying that reached their breaking point has long since been refuted.

[Are_grits_groceries]

6. I am sure they will be investigating everything about this student

and this teacher. However, I will wait to withhold judgment until I hear more. That teacher could have had a major impact on the kid in some way. However, it could be a lot of things that have built up, and something that teacher did triggered it.
I'm not sure.

[TheWraith]

8. Usually so do I...

But in a case like this there are certain things which just scream bad news.

[madaboutharry]

19. Did you read the article?

It says he never was a student of this teacher.

[TheWraith]

20. Yes, thoroughly.

And it doesn't say he wasn't, either. Nor does it give any reason not to believe that there was a reason he targeted this particular teacher whether it was "his" teacher or not.

[Quantess]

24. Are you suggesting the boy may have had a semi-valid reason for shooting the teacher?

[onehandle]

5. What kind of Constitutionally protected tool did the student use?

Has the lobbyist organization for the gun industry come to the aid of the tool?

When will the country wake up and declare guns people?

[proteus_lives]

14. Yeah.

They should arrest the gun. Because it obviously forced itself in the kid's hand and directed his actions from that point on. I mean come on! It's not like the one pulled the trigger bears any responsibility for his actions? That's silly!

[east texas lib]

21. I know exactly what you mean!...

My guns drag me around all the time! To gun shows, sporting goods stores and shooting ranges, all the
while demanding endless amounts of ammunition, paper targets, gun oil and maintenance in an attempt
to satisfy their insatiable appetite for wanton destruction! They're evil, I tell ya' and they'll
never ever stop!:o

[proteus_lives]

22. Me too!

Last weekend I was helping my dad clean his guns and they wanted do nothing but go to the range and play with their friends. I told them, "not till you guys clean your holsters and pick up after your own spent casings!" Guns: "Awwwwwww."
(Shakes head) "Guns today!"
;-)

[dgibby]

9. According to CNN,

teacher did not know/teach student. The student entered the classroom, pointed the gun at the whiteboard, gun apparently jammed, then student aimed the gun at the teacher, then above the teacher's head. Police spokesman said the teacher had given a statement, but didn't know anything about guns, so was unable to describe the malfunction. Student left the classroom, then shot himself.

[shadowknows69]

11. Jeremy spoke in class today

[Aristus]

13. Jeremy succeeded, and had enough humanity and self-respect not to take anyone with him.

Why can't these schoolyard psychos shoot themselves first and save everybody a lot of trouble?

[proteus_lives]

12. Awful.

[JackInGreen]

15. I hate to

be the voice of "has anyone thought of the perpetrator?" according to a report on MSNBC, the gun initially jammed or had the safety on, he fired over the teachers head, then bolted and tried to take his own life. This doesn't sound like Claybold and Harris, or many of the other incidents in recent years, this sounds (at least to me) like an angry, frightened kid that made a stupid decision, realized it, looked momentarily at how teh world would react to his actions (failed though his objectives, if murder, may have been), and decided that the only course of action left was to put one in his head.

Call me naive, or a patsy, but with the current amount of information, my heart goes out to the kid with the gun in this case.
Not to say I have no empathy or sympathy for the teacher or the students, they've reieved a horrble scare (admitadly, could have been a LOT worse).
I refuse, however, to discount the kids motivations in this case.

[Are_grits_groceries]

16. I am not discounting any of his motivations.

I am just going to wait to hear more about what they were. It is sad that for whatever reason, this was what he resorted to.

[JackInGreen]

17. Unlike some

other instances in the media like this lateley....this is the first one taht made me think "Gods, kiddo, what made you think that THIS was the only option left to you?"

[Arctic Dave]

23. Whoever owns the gun needs to spend some time in jail for

not properly restraining their weapons.