Police killed student outside Wisconsin school, official says

Police shot and killed a Wisconsin student outside a middle school after receiving a report of someone with a weapon while class was in session Wednesday, the state’s attorney general said in the first law enforcement briefing on the incident that sent children fleeing amid gunshots.

Authorities in Mount Horeb had previously said an active shooter who never got inside the building was “neutralized” outside the school in Mount Horeb.

State Attorney General Josh Kaul said at the briefing Wednesday evening that no one else was harmed and that an investigation is continuing.

“This incident took place outdoors. The subject in this case never gained entry,” he said.

Authorities at the briefing described the student as a juvenile male, but did not provide further identification. Authorities also did not say how many officers had fired weapons and whether they were met with gunfire.

Police remained on the scene hours after the incident. The Mount Horeb Area School District had only announced plans to release younger students from a nearby elementary school and kept others on a lockdown for several hours while police continued to investigate.

For panicked kids and their parents, the initial incident and the wait to be reunited was terrifying. Parents described children hiding in closets, afraid to communicate on cellphones, and one middle schooler said his class initially fled the school gym on in-line skates.

The district used Facebook posts throughout the day to give updates, with the earliest coming around 11:30 a.m. and reporting that all district schools were on lockdown.

Authorities in Mount Horeb said without giving details that the “alleged assailant” was armed, and witnesses described hearing gunshots and seeing dozens of children running.

More than four hours later, school buses remained lined up for blocks outside the middle school and authorities had used police tape to surround the middle school, the nearby high school and playing fields between the two buildings.

For panicked kids and their parents, the initial incident and the wait to be reunited was terrifying