17-year-old suspect in Wilmer-Hutchins High School shooting taken into custody, Dallas ISD says
The 17-year-old suspect in the Wilmer-Hutchins High School shooting Tuesday afternoon has been taken into custody, the school district said.
According to The Dallas Morning News, the suspect, identified as Tracy Haynes Jr., turned himself in just after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday with the help of an organization called Urban Specialists – a community group that advocates against violence.
Haynes has been charged with aggravated assault mass shooting. He's currently in the Dallas jail on a $600,000 bond, according to police records. The Dallas County Sheriff's Office said if Haynes posts bond, he will be required to wear an ankle monitor.
Five hospitalized after Dallas school shooting
Dallas police responded just after 1 p.m. to a shooting incident reported at Wilmer-Hutchins High School, located at 5500 Langdon Road. One student told CBS News Texas that she heard seven gunshots.
"I heard like five shots go off. It was right next to my classroom," said Deliyah Martin, a junior at the high school in the Dallas Independent School District. "They told me, 'Get down, turn the lights off.' My teacher locked the door, did all the procedures that they were supposed to do, and we just sat there."
Authorities confirmed at around 2:20 p.m. that there was no active threat and that the school campus had been secured.
At least five people have been hospitalized after the shooting on Tuesday afternoon, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by CBS News Texas, which is inconsistent with information from first responders.
According to Dallas Fire-Rescue, three of the four victims were shot and their injuries are non-life-threatening. The victims were taken to Baylor Scott & White Health, Parkland and Methodist Hospital Dallas in Oak Cliff. DFR also said three of the victims are between the age of 15 and 18 and one victim's age is unknown.
CBS News Texas is working to independently confirm the final number of victims.
"Honestly, I'm afraid for my daughter to even go back to that school at all because I don't feel like she's safe there," said Tamika Martin, Deliyah Martin's mom.
Unanswered questions remain
Dallas ISD Assistant Chief of Police Christina Smith said the gun did not come through "during regular intake time so, it was not a failure of our staff, of our protocols, or of the machinery that we have."
Many questions remain unanswered after the shooting. Dallas ISD has not said what led up to the shooting nor how a gun was able to get on campus.
The district said that most middle and high schools do have metal detectors at entrances.
"They checked our bags and stuff, so I don't know how they got it in," Wilmer-Hutchins 11th grader Detaeja King said.
Classes canceled for the remainder of the week
Dallas ISD Superintendent Stephanie Elizalde said classes at Wilmer-Hutchins are canceled for the rest of the week. Elizalde said mental health clinicians will be available.
"Quite frankly, this is just becoming way too familiar, and it should not be familiar," said Elizalde.
The high school had a shooting almost a year ago to the day. The April 12, 2024, shooting happened inside a classroom and was targeted, stemming from a dispute, officials said at the time.
