Two students were shot, one fatally, by a 17-year-old student at Nashville’s Antioch High School on Wednesday, according to police.
The shooter then turned the gun on themself during the rampage, authorities said.
Josselin Corea Escalante, 16, was fatally shot by her classmate, whose name has not yet been released.
The teen shooter rode the bus to school on Wednesday morning. Around 11 a.m., he went to the bathroom to grab a pistol before making his way to the school’s cafeteria, where he “confronted” Escalante before firing “multiple rounds,” striking and killing her, Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said at an afternoon press conference.
A second student was taken to the hospital after suffering a “graze wound” to the arm; he has been treated and released, he said. Police mistakenly said this student was a female at an earlier press conference.
A third student suffered a facial injury, which was not a gunshot wound, police said. This student fell in the incident, officials said.
It’s not immediately clear if the shooting was targeted, Drake said. Authorities are investigating the motive, Drake said, noting that police are looking into “materials on the internet” as part of the probe.
The school, which had been on lockdown this morning, has since been cleared and there is no longer a danger at the school, Don Aaron, public affairs director with the MNPD said.
The identities of the students have not yet been released.
Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools has urged families to call the reunification number at (615) 401-1712 for information about picking up their students.
The school district also said it would be offering social workers and guidance counselors for students and families.
In the wake of the incident, a mother of an Antioch High School student said she’s apprehensive to send her child back to school, telling WSMV 4: “You should be sending your kids to school so they can get an education and not have to worry if they’ll get a bullet in them.” Rather than focusing on taking away phones, the school needs to take away guns, she added.
The president and his team are monitoring the news out of Nashville, a White House official told The Independent, adding that the White House offers it’s thoughts and prayers to those impacted by the tragedy.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he has been briefed on the incident. He praised the swift efforts of first responders and offered his condolences to victims and their families in a post on X: “As we await more information, I join Tennesseans in praying for the victims, their families & the school community.”
Just three weeks into the new year, there have already been 10 school shootings, according to K-12 School Shooting Database.
In 2024, there were 205 incidents of gunfire on school grounds across the U.S., the most incidents in one year in the 11-year period tracked by Everytown.
In mid-December, a 15-year-old girl opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School, a private K-12 school in Madison, Wisconsin, killing a student and a teacher. The shooter also died in the incident due to a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Months earlier, in September, two students and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia. The 14-year-old suspected shooter has been indicted on 55 counts, including four counts of felony and malice murder, while his father, Colin Gray, was indicted on 29 counts, including two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Wednesday’s shooting in Nashville occurred almost two years after the Covenant School mass shooting that devastated the city in 2023. A former student fatally shot six victims, including students and staff.
This is a developing story
