One student at a North Texas high school was shot and killed Monday morning and another was injured, authorities said.
The shooting at Lamar High School in Arlington, a city located between Dallas and Fort Worth, happened outside of the school building, according to the Arlington Police Department. The department confirmed they arrested the suspected shooter in an update shared on Facebook shortly after the incident.
Both victims as well as the suspected shooter are students at the school, authorities said.
Arlington police officers responded to multiple calls that shots had been fired outside of Lamar High School before 7 a.m. local time on Monday. Because classes begin daily at 7:35 a.m., “not all students had arrived on campus when this incident occurred,” the police department wrote in a subsequent update shared about two hours after the shooting.
“We do not believe the suspected shooter ever entered the school,” the update read. “Officers were able to locate and take that individual into custody shortly after arriving on scene.”
Police said the school building had been secured once the suspect was in custody and did not believe any active threats to the school remained after the arrest. However, the school was locked down while officers searched and cleared the entire building, the police department said. The lockdown order was lifted after about 3 1/2 hours, when Arlington police announced that officers had completed their search and would begin releasing students back to their families. All students who were inside the building during the lockdown were being bussed to a local athletics center affiliated with the school district, which will be used for reunification, police said, adding that students’ parents and guardians would be able to pick them up at noon.
School officials had previously confirmed that the building was placed under a lockdown in light of the police search.
“Lamar HS is in lockdown due to an on-campus shooting,” read an alert notice that the Arlington Independent School District posted on its website early Monday morning. “The shooting occurred outside the school. Please avoid campus while APD investigates.”
In their initial update after the shooting, Arlington police addressed the families of Lamar High School students who were still inside.
“Parents, please look out for information from our partners at Arlington ISD regarding student release,” the police department wrote.
“Lamar High School is currently on lockdown and you will not be allowed on campus,” the message continued. “Although there is no longer any active threat, per our protocols, officers must clear the entire building, which would take some time.”
The department said it will share additional information about the shooting “when we’re able to.”
