Classmate arrested after allegedly shooting 13-year-old at Oakland school
Oakland – A 13-year-old student was shot at a school in East Oakland by a classmate Monday afternoon and the classmate was arrested, police said.
CBS Bay Area reports that officers were called to the Madison Park Academy and found the 13-year-old victim suffering from a gunshot wound. Officers said they were also able to quickly take the alleged shooter into custody and recover the firearm that was used.
School was in session at the time, officials said.
The victim was taken to an area hospital and was in stable condition, according to authorities.
Following the shooting, sobbing family members waited by the school gates, anxious to reunite with their children.
It was around 1:30 Monday when students inside heard what turned out to be a gun shot.
"I didn't now how to react so I just tried to stay as calm as possible," said student Roman Guerrero.
"A loud boom went off," said Zacary Mason-Roa, a seventh-grader. "I thought it was firecrackers until I heard the coaches screaming."
"We knew it wasn't a joke because the principal, her voice started shaking and it was a lot to take in, you know?," said high school senior Roman Guerrero.
The students then followed what they learned during their active shooter drills. They blocked the doors and stayed quiet.
"Everybody was scared" said Guerrrero, "We didn't know what to do. They just told us to get under our desks and follow procedures until everything started quieting down."
"They told us to call our parents and they called the police. We were just sitting down and being quiet. I didn't know what to do," said Mason-Roa.
At a Monday news conference addressing recent gun violence in the city, Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong reacted to the school shooting.
"You have heard from me over the last several weeks about a number of shootings and incidents that have happened at our schools and our playgrounds," Armstrong said. "This is impacting every area in our city. Nobody one is immune from this level from gun violence."
"We've proven as a city that we have the ability to destroy one another. There's no doubt about that. Repair, we must turn and find ways to bless one another," said Armstrong.
That may be a difficult task for a community that's been impacted deeply by gun violence.
Dr. Hilit Kletter, a psychologist with Stanford Children's Health, believes the first step is to open a line of communication and have the hope for peace.
"It's important to be aware and for the community to come together, have space to be able to talk about the experiences and for people to be able to voice their emotions. Also to talk about what we are doing to move forward," Dr. Kletter said.
Teachers were equally as concerned about the school shooting. The Oakland Education Association released a statement Monday calling for "continued, comprehensive solutions" to address gun violence.
"Educators are shaken, sad, horrified and stressed after today's school shooting at Madison Park Academy that wounded one student," said OEA President Keith Brown. "Educators have major concerns over the resources that are readily available to support the needs of our students. Our public schools should be safe havens for students, free from the fear of gun violence."
A campus in the Oakland Unified School District, Madison Park Academy serves about 750 students in grades 6-12.
