The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Teenage suspect in Denver high school shooting found dead
A 17-year-old student was found dead in the Colorado woods after being accused of shooting and wounding two administrators at his Denver high school where students and parents were already fed up over recent violence and a lack of action by officials, authorities said Thursday.
The shooting occurred Wednesday morning at East High School in Denver, not far from downtown, while two administrators searched Austin Lyle for weapons, a daily requirement because of the boy’s behavioral issues, authorities said.
Lyle fled after the shooting, and his body was found Wednesday night near his car in a remote, mountain area about 50 miles southwest of Denver, outside the small town of Bailey, in Park County. The county coroner’s office confirmed early Thursday that the body was Lyle’s. The cause of death was not released.
Denver’s Board of Education scheduled a special meeting Thursday to discuss the shooting and school security. The meeting comes after parents who converged on the 2,500-student East High campus Wednesday voiced frustration that officials were not adequately protect their children.
The shooting occurred at a school shaken by frequent lockdowns and violence, including the recent killing outside the school of a classmate that prompted East High students to march on the Colorado Capitol earlier this month.
“I am sick of it,” said Jesse Haase, who planned to talk with her daughter about taking her out of classes for the rest of the year.
Wednesday’s shooting happened just before 10 a.m. in an office area as Lyle was undergoing a search as part of a “safety plan” that required him to be patted down daily, officials said. The gun used in the shooting was not immediately recovered, Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said.
One of the wounded administrators was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon, and the second was in serious condition, said Heather Burke, a spokesperson for Denver Health hospital.
Students from East High School had been scheduled to testify Wednesday before the Colorado Legislature on gun safety bills.
“This is the reality of being young in America: sitting through a shooting and waiting for information just hours before you’re scheduled to testify in support of gun safety bills,” said Gracie Taub, a 16-year-old sophomore.