They'll learn eventually... NOT!
Vice Principal Shot at Philadelphia High School
Updated 1.00 p.m. ET (1700 GMT) October 4, 1999
The assistant principal at a high school in West Philadelphia was shot in the leg
Monday after he confronted a 17-year-old student suspected of carrying a gun,
police and witnesses said. No one else was injured.
William Burke, 61, assistant principal at John Bartram High School in southwest
Philadelphia, was shot in his right thigh around 10 a.m., police spokeswoman Carmen Torres said. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, a hospital spokesman said.
"I don't know if it was by accident, on purpose, I don't know what the circumstances are," said district spokeswoman Pam Weddington. She did not know if the school was evacuated or if classes were still being held.
After the shooting, witnesses said the suspect tried running into other classrooms
but students held the doors shut. The suspect was later apprehended about a block away from the school. Police also recovered a gun believed used in the shooting.
No charges had been filed as of late Monday morning. Torres would not identify the suspect.
Dozens of students left the school building, though officials said they were not closing school until 1 p.m.
Dorsett's mother, Cynthia Dorsett, 35, rushed to the school after she heard about the shooting.
"I feel sorry for the victim but I also feel sorry for the students. If they used the
metal detectors the way they are supposed to be used, this wouldn't have happened," Ms. Dorsett said.
Jerry Jordan, vice president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, said he
didn't believe metal detectors had been installed at the school, which has about
1,000 students.
"We've got to ensure that schools are safe havens for our children," Jordan said.
The bullet that hit Burke also went through the sole of a teacher's shoe. That teacher, who was not immediately identified, was not injured.
A student, Akiera Collins, told Fox News she witnessed the shooting.
"We were only in class for five minutes" when she heard fighting in the hallway, she said. When she and her classmates went into the hallway, she said they found the vice principal trying to break up a fight between two students.
One student had a gun and shot the vice principal, Collins said, but "he wasn't
going for the vice principal, he was going for the other student."
The shooter then ran out of the building, she said.
Police would not identify the suspect and would say only that the vice principal
was a man in his 50s.
Collins said, however, that police had the wrong person. "They locked up some other boy for no reason," she said.
Students were scared to return to class after the shooting, Collins said. "How you gonna send your child somewhere where they're gonna be killed in a matter of minutes?" she asked.
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Sigh...
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"America needs additional gun laws like a giraffe needs snow tires."
--Rabbi Mermelstein, JPFO
Vice Principal Shot at Philadelphia High School
Updated 1.00 p.m. ET (1700 GMT) October 4, 1999
The assistant principal at a high school in West Philadelphia was shot in the leg
Monday after he confronted a 17-year-old student suspected of carrying a gun,
police and witnesses said. No one else was injured.
William Burke, 61, assistant principal at John Bartram High School in southwest
Philadelphia, was shot in his right thigh around 10 a.m., police spokeswoman Carmen Torres said. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, a hospital spokesman said.
"I don't know if it was by accident, on purpose, I don't know what the circumstances are," said district spokeswoman Pam Weddington. She did not know if the school was evacuated or if classes were still being held.
After the shooting, witnesses said the suspect tried running into other classrooms
but students held the doors shut. The suspect was later apprehended about a block away from the school. Police also recovered a gun believed used in the shooting.
No charges had been filed as of late Monday morning. Torres would not identify the suspect.
Dozens of students left the school building, though officials said they were not closing school until 1 p.m.
Dorsett's mother, Cynthia Dorsett, 35, rushed to the school after she heard about the shooting.
"I feel sorry for the victim but I also feel sorry for the students. If they used the
metal detectors the way they are supposed to be used, this wouldn't have happened," Ms. Dorsett said.
Jerry Jordan, vice president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, said he
didn't believe metal detectors had been installed at the school, which has about
1,000 students.
"We've got to ensure that schools are safe havens for our children," Jordan said.
The bullet that hit Burke also went through the sole of a teacher's shoe. That teacher, who was not immediately identified, was not injured.
A student, Akiera Collins, told Fox News she witnessed the shooting.
"We were only in class for five minutes" when she heard fighting in the hallway, she said. When she and her classmates went into the hallway, she said they found the vice principal trying to break up a fight between two students.
One student had a gun and shot the vice principal, Collins said, but "he wasn't
going for the vice principal, he was going for the other student."
The shooter then ran out of the building, she said.
Police would not identify the suspect and would say only that the vice principal
was a man in his 50s.
Collins said, however, that police had the wrong person. "They locked up some other boy for no reason," she said.
Students were scared to return to class after the shooting, Collins said. "How you gonna send your child somewhere where they're gonna be killed in a matter of minutes?" she asked.
----------
Sigh...
------------------
"America needs additional gun laws like a giraffe needs snow tires."
--Rabbi Mermelstein, JPFO