Police have identified the Oregon school shooter , and say freshman student at Reynolds High School Jared Michael Padgett carried an assault rifle in the attack that left one classmate dead and a teacher wounded.
The shooting at Reynolds High School in Troutdale happened yesterday, but an ID on the young gunman was not released until today.
According to Troutdale Police Chief Scott Anderson, Padgett fired an AR-15 during the attack, but the 15-year-old freshman also carried a semi-automatic handgun and several hundred rounds of ammunition.
The assault rifle, handguns, and ammo were reportedly taken from Padgett’s family home, where the teen was able to circumvent measures taken to secure the stockpile of weapons.
CNN’s Anne Claire tweeted an apparent selfie taken by Jared Padgett, noting that teachers described the alleged shooter as a “good kid” following the incident:
#CNN : Oregon HS Shooter ID’s by police as 15 yr old Jared Padgett; His former teacher tells CNN he was “a good kid” pic.twitter.com/qnGdDoIkP1
— AnneClaire Stapleton (@AnneClaireCNN) June 11, 2014
Killed in the attack was Emilio Hoffman, 14, a classmate of Padgett’s. Cops say no apparent motive was yet visible, and that Hoffman was shot and killed in a boys’ restroom.
Also hit in the Oregon school shooting was teacher Todd Rispler, who sustained a non-life threatening wound to the hip before police cornered Padgett.
The shooter was eventually confined to a bathroom, where police believe he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Anderson confirmed that the teen used an assault rifle during the attack, adding:
“The shooter obtained the weapons from his family home… The weapons had been secured, but he defeated the security measures.”
He continued:
“This is a tragedy that affects our whole community… This is not supposed to happen in any school, or to any child.”
The Oregonian quotes Anderson on the findings one day after the Reynolds High School shooting:
“The shooter used an AR-15 type rifle in the attack and carried, but did not use, a semi-automatic handgun. Investigators also recovered nine loaded magazines with the capability of holding several hundred rounds… The shooter also had a large knife. He was wearing a non-ballistic vest used for carrying ammunition and other items. He also was wearing a multi-sport helmet with a camouflage design.”
Police also stated that it would be inappropriate to speculate upon Padgett’s motive in the shooting, but added that there was no apparent connection between the two boys.
[Image: Jared Padgett, Police Handout]
