Deadly shooting takes place at an Iowa high school

On March 8, six teenagers were arrested in Des Moines, Iowa for shooting outside of a high school, killing one and injuring two others. One of the suspects was a 14-year-old boy. All are being tried for first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder.

The police later gave more information about the killing, saying that the 15-year-old who was killed was not a student at the high school, but was instead the intended target of a drive-by shooting. The two other victims, a 16 and 18-year-old girl, did attend the school, and were not targeted specifically but were merely caught in the crosshairs. Both of the two survivors are in the hospital with serious injuries, and the 18-year-old is said to be in critical condition.

The shooting took place at 2:50 p.m., right around dismissal time for the high school. Police received numerous phone calls and the school went into lockdown until the authorities gave the “all clear” signal around 3:30 p.m. Students were kept indoors until then and followed the standard lockdown procedure.

The district superintendent Thomas Ahart canceled school for the next few days and postponed the ACT admissions test along with parent-teacher conferences. The district would also provide grief counselors to students who needed them. He later gave a statement on the matter saying that school shootings have “become too common” and  “real change to gun laws and access would go a long way to help us. Our staff and students are forced to train for these incidents and the trauma associated with the repeated drills and incidents will remain with them for years to come. It’s unfortunate that our state and our country have become a place where firearms are far too easily accessible.”

Unfortunately for gun control advocates, many of these protests have begun falling on deaf ears. While the war in Ukraine rages on and COVID lingers, many people don’t have much time to worry about how small local shootings might affect them.