Seventh-Grader Who Shot Himself in Ohio School Bathroom Carried Distraction Device in Backpack

An Ohio seventh-grader who shot himself inside of a school bathroom also carried a distraction device in his backpack.

According to police, the seventh-grader who brought a gun into Jackson Memorial Middle School in Massillon, Ohio also had a device in his backpack meant to create a distraction, WBALTV 11 reports. Investigators confirmed that the device was not an explosive that would cause harm to anyone, but they refrained from describing the "distraction device" in detail.

On the morning of Tuesday, Feb. 20, all local schools in Jackson Township went into lockdown after a seventh grader apparently shot himself in a boys' bathroom in Jackson Memorial Middle School around 7:50 a.m, The student was rushed to a nearby hospital to be treated for the self-inflicted gunshot wound, but his condition is unknown.

A message was posted to the schools' websites and social media pages early Tuesday morning to warn parents and students of the incident. It read: "A Jackson Memorial Middle School student suffered an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound this morning. Safety Services are on the scene at this time."

"The Middle School and High School are on lockdown at this time," the announcement continued. "Students will be released to their parents in the near future. All four elementary school will remain closed for today."

Questions surrounding the incident, including how the student was able to bring a gun on the middle school campus, have yet to be answered.

"We will have an ongoing investigation into this and we are in the very preliminary stages of that," police chief Mark Brink told media following the incident.

The incident came less than a week after confessed gunman Nikolas Cruz entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida and opened fire, killing 17 students and adults and wounding more than a dozen.