(The Center Square) – A shooting on school grounds at Garfield High School in Seattle’s Central District has resulted in the death of a 17-year-old student.
Seattle police patrol officers responded to reports of a shooting on Thursday afternoon. Officers found the student with multiple gunshot wounds.
At 12:30 p.m., patrol officers responded to reports of a shooting in the 400 block of 23rd Avenue South and located a 17-year-old male suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.
The Seattle Police Department provided medical aid until the Seattle Fire Department arrived on scene and continued treatment. The male was transported to Harborview Medical Center in serious condition.
SPD officers determined that an altercation took place on school grounds prior to the shooting at Garfield High School.
The student died from his injuries later in the day.
“This tragedy greatly affects our entire SPS community – my primary concern is the well-being and safety of our students and staff,” Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Brent Jones said in a statement. “We in Seattle Public Schools are committed to providing the necessary support and resources to our students and staff during this tragic event.”
Classes at Garfield High School are canceled for Friday, June 7 and Monday, June 10.
In a separate statement regarding the shooting, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said the student’s death speeds up the city’s urgency to address gun violence.
“While Seattle continues to advance both law enforcement and community-based solutions, the current tools available to us are not enough,” Harrell said. “It is past time to reject state preemption over gun laws and give cities the freedom to set our own commonsense gun safety laws and better keep people safe.”
Harrell mentioned that Friday is National Gun Violence Awareness Day, in which the city had planned an event to commemorate a new memorial garden for victims of gun violence.
The Seattle Education Association also put out a statement on social media calling for restrictions on gun access, saying “our students deserve to learn and thrive in safe communities and schools, without the threat of gun violence.”
