An 18-year-old high school student in Texas who is accused of gunning down multiple people at his school has been released from jail on bail.
“The student accused of injuring four people in a shooting at Timberview High School in Arlington on Wednesday was released on bail from the Tarrant County Jail on Thursday,” the Star-Telegram reported, adding that the suspect was charged “with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.”
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The suspect had been transferred from Arlington jail to the Tarrant County facility before being released after posting a $75,000 bond. Video posted online showed the suspect being released.
The alleged school shooter, who is a black male, turned himself in to law enforcement hours after the shooting, which sent multiple people to the hospital.
The New York Post reported:
Footage on social media allegedly showed [the suspect] getting into an altercation during class with another student that escalated to gunfire Wednesday. The fight was broken up and the two students calmed down, but then [the suspect] pulled out a firearm from his orange backpack and fired several shots that struck three people, according to an arrest warrant Thursday.
Calvin Pettitt, a 25-year-old English teacher who jumped in to break up the fight, was shot in the back, suffering broken ribs and a collapsed lung, according to police and his family. The other victims were identified as Zacchaeus Selby, Eyimofe Olawepo and Pariesa Altma, according to a bond document obtained by Dallas News.
The suspect’s attorney claimed that this shooting was different because the suspect was being bullied at school, even though many school shootings that have occurred across the U.S. seemingly involve cases where the shooters were bullied.
“There are numerous school shootings that have occurred across this country which are tragic. All school shootings are tragic,” the lawyer said. “However, in this situation, this was not someone who was just out to go and shoot a school and had made up their mind [and said,] ‘You know hey I’m upset and I’m just going to shoot anyone I see.’”
“That was not the situation here,” the attorney claimed. “So I request the media correct their narrative with regard to what happened, and that you all respect the family’s privacy.”
The suspect’s family said that he was “depressed and some days did not even want to get out of bed” because of the situation at school.
“I am certain that he was fearful for his safety and felt that he had no support from those in authority whose responsibility it was to protect him,” the family said in a statement. “Please know that I am not suggesting that taking a gun to school was the right choice to make, I am just saying that there is so much more to the story and all of the details should be known so that my son can be properly defended.”