15-year-old charged after 2 injured in shooting at Virginia high school

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Police arrested a 15-year-old boy on several charges after a shooting at Heritage High School in Newport News left two of his classmates injured with gunshot wounds, police said Tuesday.

>> Read more trending news

Authorities responded to reports of the shooting around 11:40 a.m. Monday. Police Chief Steve Drew said a 17-year-old boy suffered a gunshot wound to the side of his face while a 17-year-old girl was shot in the leg.

Both victims were taken to hospitals and are expected to survive, Drew said.

Two other people were wounded after apparently suffering injuries while evacuating the school. One person has a broken or sprained arm while the other experienced asthma or breathing issues, Drew said.

>> Related: Suspect in custody after 2 teens shot at Heritage High School in Virginia

Hours after the shooting, around 2:25 p.m., a family member brought a 15-year-old boy to Juvenile Services, police said. Authorities transported him to Newport News Police Headquarters, where he was interviewed and later charged with two counts of aggravated malicious wounding, two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and other weapons-related charges.

Police said Monday that the victims and the suspects knew one another, though officials declined to elaborate.

In a statement released Tuesday, Drew praised officers for their quick response to the shooting and dispatchers who took the initial calls and coordinated efforts to respond. He also thanked Newport News Public Schools officials for their assistance “providing information that led to the arrest.”

“It is by the grace of God there was no loss of life,” he said. “We know this will be difficult to process for everyone involved and hope students, families, and faculty members take advantage of the resources that have been made available to help them cope with what happened yesterday at Heritage High School.”

©2021 Cox Media Group