"We are devastated": 2 hurt, 2 arrested in stabbing at Washburn High School
MINNEAPOLIS -- Minneapolis police are investigating a chaotic night at Washburn High School, that led to the arrests of two people.
Just after 7:30 p.m. Thursday, officers responded to the school and found a 17-year-old boy with non-life threatening stab wounds to his lower back. Police say a large fight then occurred after the stabbing, and minutes later officers heard shots and found a 16-year-old boy with a gun in a nearby yard. That boy was taken into custody along with a 17-year-old boy who was running with the suspect. During the fight, another teenager was hurt and taken to the hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries.
"It's really confusing. To hear that in this part of town," said Tim Schmidt.
Schmidt and his family live across the street from Washburn High School. As classes resumed Friday morning, he was still trying to wrap his mind around what happened Thursday night.
"I know things like this happen in cities. And we want to support the kids that need the help and be available for them. So, it's a community issue we are going to participate," said Schmidt.
Witnesses said a 17-year-old boy was stabbed in the lower back during a Somali Culture night event. After the stabbing, a fight broke out in the auditorium, resulting in a 15-year-old boy being rushed to HCMC with potentially life-threatening injuries.
As officers responded to the crowd, they heard shots, and saw what they believed to be muzzle flashes outside the school.
They found a 16-year-old boy with a gun in a nearby yard. No injuries were reported, but police took the teenager into custody along with a 17-year-old boy who was with the suspect. Chief Brian O'Hara says officers recovered a Glock handgun at the scene with a 50-round drum magazine.
Minneapolis Public Schools released a statement Friday morning saying they are "devastated that what started as a beautiful evening ended up with senseless violence." The statement also said that "Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) is cooperating with police as they work on their investigation. ... MPS will continue to do everything we can to ensure student and staff safety at school events."
"They are kids and they need their safety and protection at this point. So, we want to help them so they don't have to go through this again," said Schmidt.
Principal Emily Palmer wrote in a note on Friday night that none of the four students involved in the incident were Washburn students.
The middle school nearby went on lockdown during the fight. Though classes resumed Friday, the district says support staff was on hand to talk with students about what happened. As of Friday morning, police say the stabbing suspect was still at large.
