Authorities said a boy opened fire with a handgun Wednesday at a high school near Denver, Colorado, wounding two students, before fatally shooting himself.
The shooting occurred just before 12:30 p.m. local time at Evergreen High School in the Colorado foothills, about 28 miles southwest of Denver, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. The suspect was believed to be a student at the school, Jacki Kelley, a sheriff’s office spokesperson, told reporters in a news briefing. His identity has not been released.
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One of the two student victims who was shot was in critical condition at CommonSpirit St. Anthony’s Hospital in Lakewood. The second student at St. Anthony’s with non-life-threatening injuries was described as “no longer in the care of the hospital” as of Wednesday evening. The students’ identities have not been released.
Kelley said that deputies responded to numerous 911 calls, making contact with the shooter within five minutes. She said no law enforcement officers fired any weapons, however.
“The first on scene — they were at the school — were pretty quick to find our suspect,” Kelley said.
A preliminary investigation revealed the shooting took place inside and outside of the school building, Kelly said, adding that the suspect used a handgun and numerous students witnessed the shooting. The suspect sustained self-inflicted gunshot wounds, the sheriff’s office later confirmed on social media.
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Hundreds of law enforcement officers from across the Denver metro area responded to help. Kelley said they formed multiple teams, and after the initial chaos, they cleared the school room by room. The scene was declared safe after that.
Jefferson County Schools set up a reunification center for parents and guardians at Bergen Meadow Elementary School. By nightfall, the center had closed and the sheriff’s office stated on social media: “If you are a parent that has still not located your child, please call Jeffcom 911 at 303-980-7300.”
“Reunification, I don’t know if it went really well; it was bumpy because (after the shots were fired) we had kids running in every direction — to the library, to the substation, to a couple different schools,” Kelley said.
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“One of the biggest concerns … was making sure that these students get back with their families,” said Sheriff Reggie Marinelli. “And so that reunification was huge to us. As many of you, I’m sure, experienced, getting up here — with the road conditions, with all the first responders getting up here — it got a little congested, but we made it work because of all that preparation and that training that we have been doing for many years.”
A mother who spoke with CBS Colorado said her son was near a door when the shooting happened. The Evergreen High School freshman was in the lunchroom when he said he heard 15 to 30 gunshots. Just after 1:30 p.m., people could be seen exiting the school single file.
“I know they’ve done drills at school in classrooms, but they were at lunch,” the woman explained. “So that’s what, something that many students have said is that they just didn’t even know what to do, like a lockdown drill, with this happening at lunch.”
She suggested that parents talk to their students about this kind of scenario and what actions they should take. “Obviously, you don’t think it’s going to happen at your school or to your child, then it happens in your backyard and you’re shocked. But it seems to be happening so much that we shouldn’t be shocked, I guess.”
Her son said he wants the victims to know that everyone is thinking of them and hoping they will be okay.
A student named Silas told CBS Colorado he and his friends were eating lunch.
“They hid right around the door — wherever they told us to hide,” the sophomore said.
They hid in corners but eventually faced the gunman.
“There’s a guy there. He yelled some things and he shot at us at least twice,” Silas said.
Jeffco Public Schools said there will be no school on Thursday and Friday at Evergreen High School. School is also canceled on Thursday for all of the following schools in the Evergreen and Conifer areas:
Bergen Elementary School
Evergreen High School
Evergreen Middle School
Parmalee Elementary School
Wilmot Elementary School
Conifer High School
Elk Creek Elementary School
Marshdale Elementary School
West Jefferson Middle School
“The strength of the Jeffco community lies in the care and support of one another. Please check in with your loved ones,” district officials said in a prepared statement.
On Wednesday night Jeffco Public Schools Superintendent Tracy Dorland released a lengthy statement, which included “Safety is our number one priority every day, and yet, here we are once again, grieving with a community over gun violence impacting our students.”
Following the shooting, Highway 73 was closed in the area near Evergreen Lake for several hours, but by 5:15 p.m., it was back open.
Gov. Jared Polis and several other elected leaders in Colorado issued statements after the shooting expressing deep concern. “We are all praying for the victims and the entire community,” Polis said.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the FBI was among the law enforcement agencies who are at the scene of the shooting.
“We’re aware of the tragic situation unfolding near Denver. The FBI is on scene and in full support of local authorities to ensure everyone’s safety,” Patel wrote in a post on X.
Officers from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also on scene.
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