12-year-old injured in shooting at North Carolina middle school, police say
A student at a North Carolina middle school was taken into custody Tuesday after shooting a classmate in the leg on campus, according to local police and school officials.
The incident occurred at Hendersonville Middle School just before classes started at 7:45 a.m. Hendersonville is about 30 minutes south of Asheville in Western North Carolina.
In a joint news release issued by Henderson County Schools and the Hendersonville Police Department, officials said the campus went into a code red lockdown following the shooting. It has since been downgraded to a code yellow.
Hendersonville Middle is currently on a Code Yellow lockdown. @HVLPD has secured the area, but all individuals, including car riders & media, should avoid the area at this time. A dismissal plan for students who are already at school will be communicated when lockdown is lifted
— Henderson County Public Schools (@HCPSNC) November 24, 2020
A 12-year-old student was shot in the leg and taken to Mission Hospital in Asheville, according to the news release. The student who allegedly fired the gun was detained by an administrator and has since been taken into custody by the Hendersonville Police Department.
Officials praised the “swift response provided by school administrators, the HMS School Resource Officer, local law enforcement and first responders who quickly secured the scene.”
Students were released early while the school remained on a “preventative lockdown.”
Police said the investigation is ongoing, and more details will be released as they become available, the release states.
UPDATE from HCPS and law enforcement about this morning's incident at Hendersonville Middle:
https://t.co/SYS1gtcqwi— Henderson County Public Schools (@HCPSNC) November 24, 2020
