KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Students and staff at Highlands Elementary School at 6200 Roe Ave. are safe after an incident in the school’s parking lot forced the school into lockdown mode early Friday.
A Shawnee Mission School District spokesman said the incident started around 1:30 p.m. after a parent outside the school with her child told school officials that she thought she heard a gunshot. The school resource officer went outside and found a van damaged by a bullet, Overland Park police spokesman John Lacy said.
A class having recess was brought inside, and the building was placed on lockdown.
As police were investigating, the suspect, who was inside a house across the street from the school, again fired shots. Police returned fire, striking him.
Late Friday afternoon, Lacy said the man was in stable condition at a hospital.
Police surrounding Highlands Elementary in Mission after reports of shots fired nearby. Police told us to move back pic.twitter.com/0DnjKHpIDf
— Tom Dempsey (@KCTomDempsey) March 1, 2019
David Smith, the director communications for the Shawnee Mission School District, said the school followed protocol for when there is a potential danger outside of the building.
“Nobody comes in or out until we can assess the situation,” Smith said. “You never want this to happen, but you always want to be ready. It goes to show that we did the right thing; the drill worked. People did exactly what we wanted them to do. So, if you prepare, then you’re ready.”
Smith said the district is grateful that everyone is safe following the incident.
The Shawnee Mission School District sent the following letter to parents about the shooting:
Dear Shawnee Mission School District patrons, I am writing to let you know about an incident that took place earlier this afternoon at Highlands Elementary. While you may have heard about it on the news, we want to make sure you understand what happened. First, I want to emphasize that no one was hurt during this incident and that students and staff responded as trained. Per the event, Highlands Elementary was placed on external lockdown this afternoon after staff, who were on the playground, heard the sound of gunfire. During a lockdown, all students and staff are brought inside and no one is allowed in or out until the lockdown is lifted. Both district and city police were called. They responded immediately and made sure that students and staff were safe. Once the situation was under control, and in coordination with police who were on-site, we began to dismiss students to their parents. Dismissal was handled in a controlled environment, as an extra precaution, to ensure student, parent and staff safety. While dismissal was taking place, police engaged with an individual at a house across from the school. That engagement resulted in gunfire between that individual and police. We immediately brought everyone back into the school, until police announced that they had arrested that individual. I want to emphasize that students, staff and parents were kept safe. Students and staff acted exactly as we have trained during our safety drills. I also want to thank both our local police department and our SMSD police officers for their guidance. This was a stressful situation, and everyone handled it professionally. Safety is our first priority and we will continue to do everything in our power to keep students and staff safe. We will have social workers and counselors at the building on Monday to provide additional support to students and staff. While no one ever wants to experience something like this, I am proud of the way it was handled by our students, staff, and parents and grateful all were safe. Sincerely, Dr. Mike Fulton Superintendent
