Thank you for posting this Neal. Rae Davis-Smith http://www.angelfire.com/tn/sexton/index.html -------Original Message------- From: [email protected] Date: 11/08/05 20:42:01 To: [email protected] Subject: [TNSCOTT] School Shooting shooting If you are interested, This article ppeared in todays Oak Ridger. Home > Breaking News > Story last updated 8:25 p.m. Nov. 8, 2005 Assistant principal killed, two other principals wounded in Campbell County By: Duncan Mansfield/The Associated Press | Oak Ridger Staff JACKSBORO, Tenn. (AP) - A troubled teenager shot and killed an assistant principal and seriously wounded two other administrators at Campbell County High School on Tuesday, officials said. The student was arrested. Assistant Principal Ken Bruce was fatally wounded in the chest in the 2:11 p.m. EST shooting. He died soon after at a LaFollette hospital, authorities said. Principal Gary Seale was shot in the lower abdomen, and Assistant Principal Jim Pierce was shot in the chest. Seale was in serious condition and Pierce in critical condition at University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, hospital spokeswoman Lisa McNeal said. "I don't know what he was thinking or what his motives were," Sheriff Ron McClellan said. "I really don't know at this time." The suspect was identified by classmates as Kenny Bartley, 15. He was grazed in the hand by a bullet fired from his own .22-caliber handgun during a scuffle with the administrators and an unidentified teacher who helped wrestle the gun away, the sheriff said. "He has been in trouble before, but I just wouldn't expect something like this out of him. It is shocking," said classmate Courtney Ward, 17. "He is a big jokester. He is rowdy. But I just couldn't see him doing this." No students were injured. School will be closed the rest of the week, and counselors will be available to help students and teachers on Monday, schools director Judy Blevins said. "This situation could have gotten much worse. It did not because our staff followed the (emergency) plan in place," said Mark Wells, vice chairman of the Campbell County Board of Education. Authorities were unsure if the suspect would be charged as a juvenile or an adult. He was being held in a juvenile detention facility in nearby Scott County. "If you want me to tell you something, I'm the child's grandmother and I have no comment," Rita Bartley of Jacksboro said. The 1,400-student school, located about 30 miles northwest of Knoxville, was locked down after the shooting. Students said Seale was able to get to the school intercom and order the lockdown after being shot. "Knowing him, he probably did," McClellan said. "He is a tough fellow and a great individual. That sounds like him. Whoever did it, he did the right thing." Clifford Kohlmeyer, a former assistant principal at the school, recalled the three victims as dedicated educators and family men. Both Seale and Pierce have been educators more than 30 years, he said. "Mr. Bruce, the one who got killed, had been a lieutenant colonel in the Army and came back to teach about eight years ago," Kohlmeyer said. "We shared an office for two years. He was very dedicated to the students." Pierce had been a longtime physical education teacher and cross country team coach before moving into administration, Kohlmeyer said. "Two of the nicest people you'd ever want to meet," Kohlmeyer said. All three men have children, he said. The incident caused a huge traffic jam at the school as bus drivers and parent rushed to remove students from the campus closed by police to the public. "It is scary, it is terrifying," said Darren Davidson, waiting for his son Justin to come through the school's gates. "I thought I would have a heart attack before I got her," added his wife, Kizzie Davidson. Roger Wallace, a driver at a pizza restaurant near the school, said he saw the students being evacuated from the high school and loaded onto buses. "They are searching each student as they are getting on the buses," he said. Tuesday's shooting is the second fatal shooting of a school employee in Tennessee this year. Stewart County school bus driver Joyce Gregory, 47, was killed as she stopped to pick up a student on her route on March 1. Jason Clinard, 15, is charged with murder in the case and will be tried as an adult. In August a boy was accidentally shot in the leg in a middle school restroom in Jefferson County. The investigation into that incident led police to charge two students in a plot to kill a teacher at Maury Middle School. Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen said he has asked state education officials to provide Campbell County school officials any help they need. "Our first priority is the children, faculty and staff that call Campbell County High School home," Bredesen said in a statement. "We are doing everything we can to help ensure they have the access to the support services and counseling they need as quickly as possible." =========================================== SUPPORT OUR TROOPS---FLY THE FLAG "Genealogy is like playing hide and seek. They hide I seek!!! www.byrge.com/genealogy/ Searching: BYRGE/BUNCH/DAUGHERTY/DUNCAN/KENNEDY/ PATTERSON/PHILLIPS/SEIBER/TACKETT/WARD ==== TNSCOTT Mailing List ==== Rae Davis-Smith, List Administrator [email protected] http://www.angelfire.com/tn2/ScottCoTnMemories/index.html Scott County Memories ============================== View and search Historical Newspapers. Read about your ancestors, find marriage announcements and more. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13969/rd.ashx