14-Year-Old in Custody After Lunchroom Shooting at Ohio School

Authorities have not determined a motive.

ByABC News
February 29, 2016, 4:42 PM

— -- Four students were injured after a 14-year-old allegedly walked into the lunchroom at Madison Junior/Senior High School in Middletown, Ohio, and started firing, authorities said today.

Two of the students were hurt by the shooting and two were injured by flying shrapnel, said Anthony Dwyer, Chief Deputy of the Butler County Sheriff’s Office. None of the injuries are life-threatening, Madison Local Schools said, adding that all students were safe.

The suspect ran out of the cafeteria and up the hill in front of the school building after the shooting, Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones said at a news conference this afternoon.

The suspect allegedly abandoned his gun as he ran and then was apprehended on top of the hill while still on school grounds, Jones said.

The suspect was charged as a juvenile with two counts of attempted murder, two counts of felonious assault, one count of inducing panic and one count of making terrorist threats, Jones said. He is being held in a juvenile detention facility and has been interviewed by investigators, Jones said.

PHOTO: Four students were injured in a shooting at a Middletown, Ohio, school, Feb. 29, 2016.  The school is part of the Madison Local Schools district.
Four students were injured in a shooting at a Middletown, Ohio, school, Feb. 29, 2016. The school is part of the Madison Local Schools district.

Authorities do not know where the suspect got the gun but Jones said the teen did have the gun with him during the first part of the school day. Authorities have not determined a motive, said Jones.

Jones identified the gunshot victims as 15-year-old Cameron Smith and 14-year-old Cooper Caffery. They were both hospitalized in stable condition, according to the sheriff's office. Jones identified the other two injured victims as 14-year-old Brant Murray and 14-year-old Katherine Doucette.

The school was placed on lockdown following the incident, the district said.

The Butler County Sheriff's Office cleared the scene, the district said, later adding that students at Madison Junior/Senior High School were sent home.