‘All Students Safe’ After Ohio Seventh-Grader Shoots Himself in School Bathroom

Local authorities in Massillon, Ohio have deemed the school district as safe following an incident involving a weapon and wounded student at a middle school.

All local schools in Jackson Township went into lockdown Tuesday morning after a seventh grader apparently shot himself in a boys’ bathroom in Jackson Memorial Middle School around 7:50 a.m, police confirmed. Since that time, the wounded student has been transferred to a local hospital and the area has been cleared.

“All the students within the school are safe. There is no concern or harm to them at this time,” police chief Mark Brink told media following the incident. “We are trying to find an orderly way to have [student] dismissed and we are working through that process.”

The official added that the student’s parents have been notified, but he did not reveal his condition. The heavy first responder presence after the student’s hospital transfer, police said, was out of an abundance of caution.

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,” Brink said.

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.”

The lockdown comes nearly a week after a Florida gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and killed 17 students and adults.

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