Student Fatally Shot By Classmate In Tenn.

15-Year-Old Killed In What Police Say Was Not "A Random Act"

(CBS/ AP)  A student fatally shot a 15-year-old classmate during a dispute Thursday at a Knoxville high school, as other teenagers watched in horror as the victim clutched his chest and fell to the floor.

Police identified the victim as Ryan McDonald, a sophomore who lived with his grandmother and had alopecia, a condition that left him bald and the target of endless teasing as a child.

"He tried to have a tough exterior, like a shield, to fit in," his uncle Roger McDonald said. "He was a good kid ... who was dealt some bad cards in life."

The shooting happened shortly after 8 a.m. at the Central High School cafeteria, Chief Deputy Bill Roehl said, and the suspected shooter was taken into custody minutes later on a nearby street. The suspect and victim knew each other, Knox County School System Superintendent Bill McIntyre said.

Jamar Siler, 15, was charged with one count of first-degree murder and was being held in a juvenile court facility, police spokesman Darrell DeBusk said. Silar had an initial appearance in Juvenile Court late Thurday, but his lawyer, public defender Mark Stephens, refused to discuss the case.

"This wasn't a shooting that was a random act," Roehl said. "It was an individual directing his aggression toward another individual, not the school or the students inside the school."

The cafeteria was a popular place to gather before classes started at 8:30 a.m., students said. Chad Griffin, 15, and Josh Matthews, 14, said that they were sitting about 10 feet away from the victim and talking when they heard a sharp noise.

Griffin at first thought someone had dropped a book and then looked around.

"He got shot and started walking and he was holding his chest. There was blood everywhere. And then he fell and his arm hit me," Griffin said.

Matthews said he thought it was a fake at first but then realized the shooting was real.

"I took off running and ran outside and called my mom," Matthews said.

Students in the cafeteria began crying and scrambling to leave, while others tried to get in the room, thinking they had missed a fight, witnesses said. Students began to gather around the victim, said freshman Jared Wohlford, 14. "Everybody started running out real fast saying, 'He got shot,"' he said.

Student Devin Dial, a junior, told the Knoxville Sentinel News that she witnessed the shooting.

"I saw (the wounded boy) go to the ground and start shaking," she told the newspaper.

The school, which has about 1,400 students, was placed on lockdown after the shooting. Classes were dismissed and students were bused to a nearby church so they could be picked up by their parents.

[usclimey]

Already a tragic start to the new school year.

[carjenbe]

Ah another Tennessee Volunteer carrying their sanctioned musket in the defense of the motherland. Thank you NRA and Supreme Court, we all need a gun.

[slim1h2o]

Apparently a bullying type of thing that got out of hand.

[buttonjockey]

"Authorities haven''t released the names of the victim. . ."

How many names did he have? Or does CBS News still not have an editor.

[yamuttya]

U.S. gun laws are insane.

[yamuttya]

This wouldnt have happened if all the students were armed.

Posted by gop_forever

total insanity

[sepa2]

This wouldnt have happened if all the students were armed.
Posted by gop_forever
Yes. We were also deprived of witnessing an old fashioned O.K. Corral type skirmish

[ibzjem]

"discipline our children"

what a novel idea! Which would you rather have: Spankings, or gun violence?

[capxeno]

If the student shot was harassing the shooter before this incident (bullying) then I cannot say anything against what he did and I would place blame with the school and student social dynamics.

If it was an argument that was over something mundane (a girl, gang bs, and other idiotic shist like that) then I think the student should be sent prison until he''s at lest 21 but not charged as an adult.

But again if this was a retaliation against the person who bullied this kid, then he should not be punished and admitted to a state hospital for some psychiatric treatment then released at a later date.

[sjw1253]

gop_forever...

I don''t know where you got your brain!!! I don''t believe even the conservative republicans would say it is okay for kids to take guns to school...

You truly need some professional help... I am serious... From all of your posts (that is that I have read)... This is the most ridiculous...

I really hope that you don''t have children... It is scarey enough to think that all of the teachers may someday carry guns - but to think of kids who have not yet learned that actions have consequences (no matter what your age)... I cannot imagine how "safe" anyone would feel on the streets (when these kids are to and from school) let alone in the schools.

Please get your brain checked... You really post some scarey thoughts.

[t-0-m]

buttonjockey -- Get a life!

[labrat9999]

You''re not seriously asking where a student got a gun in KNOXVILLE, Tenn, are you? Don''t worry a small town in Texas has it all figured out, they have recently passed a law that says it''s ok for teachers to carry a gun so they can protect the students. Wow...can''t wait to read the headlines on this one. "105 pound teacher whipped over the head with a bottle, gun taken from her and 10 students killed". What fool thought this was a good idea? Well at least you won''t have to try and figure out where the student got the gun.

[erasmus81]

This wouldnt have happened if all the students were armed.
Posted by gop_forever
Yes. We were also deprived of witnessing an old fashioned O.K. Corral type skirmish

Posted by sepa2 at 11:56 AM : Aug 21, 2008


Yeah, instead of only one person dead, there would be many more.

[capxeno]

ibzjem, I''d take the gun violence over authoritarian and Christian imperial teachings any day.

[yamuttya]

This wouldnt have happened if all the students were armed.

Posted by gop_forever at 11:43 AM : Aug 21, 2008

This is the kind of naive stupidity that is making the US the laughing stock of the world.
These are the idiots that elected Bush.

[mollydtt]

If the shooter hadn''t been able to kill his victim in school, he would have done it somewhere else. Maybe across the street from the school. If kids have access to guns, they have access to guns. Having more guns at school doesn''t seem like it would help.

[irliberal]

More blood on the hands of the NRA and GOP.

Not surprising. No, not surprising at all. Just sad.

[erb0087]

RE:

"This wouldnt have happened if all the students were armed."
- Posted by gop_forever at 11:43 AM : Aug 21, 2008

==============================

Yeah, places like inner city Detroit and Philadelphia are so peaceful and tranquil, because so many people are armed.

You big dummy.

[tothestars2]

This is what happens when you kick GOD out of school. Where there is no light, there is darkness. Hate -1 Love -0

[capxeno]

tothestars2, uh God is the embodiment of hate. Put God back in school we''ll eventually have kids shooting kids because one of them doesn''t "believe" and he get shot just for that... God has more blood spilt in his name then any one person can accumulate.......

[tothestars2]

No, not a troubled teen, try cold blooded murderer

[tothestars2]

tothestars2, uh God is the embodiment of hate. Put God back in school we''''ll eventually have kids shooting kids because one of them doesn''''t "believe" and he get shot just for that... God has more blood spilt in his name then any one person can accumulate.......


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Posted by capxeno at 12:26 PM : Aug 21, 2008
+ report abuse
spoken like a true atheist.

[capxeno]

tothestars2, i never said I was an atheist. But God is not in the slightest good. Neither is he all-powerful. Also not mention he''s a result of our creation.
Bu I can''t see a close-minded Christian "sheep" understanding any of that, much less listening. So won%u2019t bother explaining further.

To be more on topic I''ll repost this,

If the student shot was harassing the shooter before this incident (bullying) then I cannot say anything against what he did and I would place blame with the school and student social dynamics.

If it was an argument that was over something mundane (a girl, gang bs, and other idiotic shist like that) then I think the student should be sent prison until he''s at lest 21 but not charged as an adult.

But again if this was retaliation against the person who bullied this kid, then he should not be punished and admitted to a state hospital for some psychiatric treatment then released at a later date.

[slim1h2o]

This world has gone nuts. After reading these posts on here, this is what I learned.

We are killing each other because we kicked God out of schools. And we''d better get God back or else we will kill you.

But if we still had God in schools, then we wouldn''t be shooting each other. But then again, we might not respect your God, so we might have to kill you for it.

It all sounds ridiculous at times. And a final thought, God loves you, and he wants to kill you! Homer Simpson.

[tothestars2]

Oh, so is he no longer a person? I''''m not condoning what he did. I''''m saying your response is ridiculous and your solution is impotant. Do you believe that God had him born as a cold blooded murderer? If not, than apparently something broke along the way. That is not an excuse, it is a truth. Well, unless you want to say God made him that way in the womb and therefore, I suppose you should give credit where credit is due. I notice you didn''''t really respond to the heart of my statement. Instead you glommed on to a phrase. That sorta takes the air out of your lofty assertions.


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Posted by IrishWench at 12:31 PM : Aug 21, 2008
+ report abuse


Yeah, you''re one who believes that personal responsibilty is not a matter of the choices we make? For the latter ,well thats just your OPINION and contrary to your belief doesn''t make it the truth.

[marcpcbs]

AP
"This wasn''t a shooting that was a random act," Roehl said. "It was an individual directing his aggression toward another individual, not the school or the students inside the school."
__________________________________
You say this as if it''s a good reason for everyone to relax.

This situation was a student possessing and discharging a gun in a school. The intended target is often times not the only one who gets hurt. There still exists large reason for concern.

[hypnotoad72]

Of course, if the school had metal detectors, the kid or its parents would have sued with the claim junior has every right to own a gun under the second amendment... No folks, children do NOT have rights adults enjoy - except to learn how to live and behave. That''s one reason why we''re in this mess today - no school uniforms, code of conduct, and anything else because that prohibits their first amendment rights. I''m surprised the crackpots haven''t figured that out yet or, worse, conjure up all sorts of excuses to justify why it''s "better" to allow kids wearing shirts with gross slogans (e.g. metal concert t-shirts and the slogans on them, topical debate figures, et cetera)... enough already.

Nice to know a fellow student was a to-be bank-robber or terrorist or something... :rolleyes:

[rixmix98]

sjw1253, I have 6 children.
Posted by gop_forever at 12:14 PM : Aug 21, 2008


I too have read several of her sick posts. She apparently received too much anesthetic during one of her deliveries.

[capxeno]

IrishWench, if he is a cold blooded murder then lets put him in the military

[slim1h2o]

IrishWench, if he is a cold blooded murder then lets put him in the military

Posted by capxeno at 12:47 PM : Aug 21, 2008

Only if he has the rifle pointing the right way. i.e. towards the enemy!

[barbaram99]

I grew up in small towns in Maine, born in 54..I lived in foster homes and at 10 years old stated my first day of class. There was not prayer said at foster home or school. Yes Humans are not as peaceful as we like. Ye over look the fact that we are animals. Ye read it right. Human animals. Ye corner an animal and what does it do..fight back..Claw..bite..ye name it..Are humans any better ..yes and no..A poster brought up gangs..Gangs are apart of America and have been from the beginning of this nation. That is a fact..The gangs shoved the native americans off their lands. our fore bears did..Today is no different. a child is dead.. let the family lay their child to rest.

[missingamerica]

If the student shot was harassing the shooter before this incident (bullying) then I cannot say anything against what he did and I would place blame with the school and student social dynamics.

If it was an argument that was over something mundane (a girl, gang bs, and other idiotic shist like that) then I think the student should be sent prison until he''s at lest 21 but not charged as an adult.

But again if this was retaliation against the person who bullied this kid, then he should not be punished and admitted to a state hospital for some psychiatric treatment then released at a later date.

Posted by capxeno at 12:35 PM : Aug 21, 2008

I do wish they would have published the grade level of the shooter...given that the victim was a junior, if the shooter was a sophomore - and particularly a frashman...

It is an unfortunate reality that upper classmen hazing lower classmen at the high school level is typically tolerated and even named "a rite of passage" by educational personnel.

lolll...and the "classmen" is not gender-specific....

[capxeno]

hypnotoad72, what happens when you become ridged and strict with kids is they will rebel more. The more rules you place on them the more trouble they%u2019re going to be.
My friend, family, and I make sure of that.

[ibzjem]

ibzjem, I''''d take the gun violence over authoritarian and Christian imperial teachings any day.

Posted by capxeno at 12:10 PM : Aug 21, 2008

What are you talking about? So you don''t believe in teaching your kids right from wrong and that certain actions garner certain punishments? Sounds like you''re into "free reign". Let the kids find their own way and not try to guide them at all.

[capxeno]

ibzjem, exactly our kids can be a lot better if they learned on their own from their own mistakes. Not letting them makes them at all cause them to be sheltered then you have people have no idea how cruel this world can be, thus they end up being unprepared for it.

[tothestars2]

hypnotoad72, what happens when you become ridged and strict with kids is they will rebel more. The more rules you place on them the more trouble they%u2019re going to be.
My friend, family, and I make sure of that.



I willing to bet the parents of the murdered teen would strongly disagree with you on that point.

[ibzjem]

Posted by capxeno at 01:00 PM : Aug 21, 2008

your not even close. You sound like a libertarian. No laws, no rules, let everyone do what they want and it''ll all work out.

So you think this shooting was just a mistake?

[ibzjem]

... and how do they know it''s a mistake if someone doesn''t tell them it is...

[credibility2]

Doesn''t sound like this school had an metal detectors. In this day and age of mental dysfunctional over-indulged kids that can''t intelligently settle their arguments and disputes without resorting to gun violence or beatings, it should be mandatory for schools to have detectors at all entrances and exits. I don''t believe any jurisdiction allows minors to carry concealed weapons. Detectors and pat-downs that''s what schools need. Violence needs to be dealt with intrusion to err on the side of safety for the greater majority. Who cares is a few are offended and want to engage the ACLU in their cause of a minority viewpoint.

[tothestars2]

LOL! School uniforms and code of conduct didn''''t help those girls who were victims of Catholic School violence in the 70''''s and 80''''s. Thrown down beat up and having their hair cut off. Didn''''t stop boys from carrying knives, attacking nuns, killing each other or even smoking in the bathroom and behind the bleachers. Same as a military uniform and code of conduct doesn''''t stop violence, criminal and sexual crimes or any other things. Same as politicians and cleryman taking oaths. You act like these codes and clothing are some sort of virtual handcuffs. They are illusions that make people like you feel safe and have a direction to point a finger when things go wrong.


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Posted by IrishWench at 12:52 PM : Aug 21, 2008

I see. My three best friends in high school attended catholic school. Those nuns can be cruel.

[capxeno]

ibzjem, that depends because if this was a retaliation against a "bully" then the kid did nothing wrong. Thus it wasn''t a mistake. Also meaning the kid that was killed got what he needed. But since the full circumstance are not disclosed right now, not much but pure speculation.

[payasyougo]

"If the student shot was harassing the shooter before this incident (bullying) then I cannot say anything against what he did and I would place blame with the school and student social dynamics."
----
The school and social dynamics can never overcome a good upbringing. The parents of the boy that did the shooting were sperm and egg donors, or it was their values, taught to their offspring, that killed the other boy.

Anyone that claims they cannot bring up decent, moral kids in this environment is lazy and never succeeded at anything significant in their own personal life either. I''m sure it is always someone else''s fault.

There is no substitute for good parenting. And maybe a large part of society just doesn''t know how to parent.

[ibzjem]

I''ve seen strict upbringings before and you''re right it does push children away, but children need guidance. People are not born with moral and ethical compasses. It has to be learned, so someone has to teach it. I firmly stand with the ideology that it starts in the home.

Notice how I didn''t mention religion.

[capxeno]

tothestars2, honestly if this kid was a "bully" I could care less what he''s parent think or feel. Also human life means just as much as an animal or bug on this planet.
So do you do an exterminators for "pest"?. If you do you have no right to discern that this is tragic.

[tomanyt]

payasyougo... Are you kidding? You mean to say that had this family raised a "good moral christian boy", this would never have happened?

[missingamerica]

Anyone that claims they cannot bring up decent, moral kids in this environment is lazy and never succeeded at anything significant in their own personal life either.

Posted by payasyougo at 01:16 PM : Aug 21, 2008

I would not be so hasty in your conclusions.

There are more than a few incredibly wealthy and successful types who have raised monsters because they were too busy NOT being "lazy" and ensuring they DID succeed to provide love and guidance to their children.

[tothestars2]

tothestars2, honestly if this kid was a "bully" I could care less what he''''s parent think or feel. Also human life means just as much as an animal or bug on this planet.
So do you do an exterminators for "pest"?. If you do you have no right to discern that this is tragic.



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Posted by capxeno at 01:18 PM : Aug 21, 2008


HUH? I never said that.

[capxeno]

ibzjem, The problem is that there is a thin line between "guidance" and "dominating" your kids. I honestly think that they%u2019re not many people who can''t cross that line. So it''s better to do nothing if you can''t correct guide them.

[tomanyt]

FarRemoved...Why not blame the shooter? He''s the one who pulled the trigger. Would you say the same if this had been your child?

[capxeno]

FarRemoved, the blame lies with the victim, his family, and the school. The shooter could vary well have no blame to take if the victim was a "bully"