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"School
Shooting Map"
Student charged with Murder of another Student at Reagan High School
AUSTIN -- A 16-year-old boy was charged with murder after
stabbing to death his ex-girlfriend (Ortralla Mosley)
in the halls of Austin's Reagan High School, police said Saturday.
Since Mosley's death, school officials have said they
were baffled by the tragedy. But parents, the Rev. Sterling Lands of Greater
Calvary Baptist Church, and a prosecutor with the Travis County district
attorney's office said school officials had reports of violence by this
student against female students [Learning
what to look for - "Early Warning Signs"
].
On Friday, school board President Doyle Valdez announced
in a statement that the district will review how Reagan officials "handled
events leading up to the tragedy to ascertain whether more could have been
done to prevent the incident." [Assessment
Training for Early Warning Signs] The review will
include an overall look at violence on campus.
Austin police spokesman Kevin Buchman identified the
victim as Ortralla Mosley, 15. She was pronounced dead shortly after
arriving at Brackenridge Hospital on Friday afternoon.
The Travis County district attorney's office will
determine whether to charge the boy as a juvenile or adult, Buchman said.
The boy was taken after the incident to the hospital for
non-life threatening injuries suffered during the stabbing, said Austin
Independent School District spokesman Andy Welch. Emergency officials said
the boy's wounds appeared to be self-inflicted.
Authorities said the stabbing occurred on the second
floor of the school, outside some classrooms in the mall area.
An English teacher said the girl -- a cheerleader and
popular straight-A student -- and the boy had broken up Thursday. Both
students were sophomores.
It was the first such student fatality during school
hours at any Austin Independent School District campus, school officials
said, and extra counselors were scheduled to be at Reagan High School
Monday.
School board President Doyle Valdez said none of Austin's
12 high schools has metal detectors. However, a school police officer
patrols the halls of each high school.
Police said the slaying was Austin's seventh murder of
the year.
(See "Checklist of a
Safe School")
Once again we ask ourselves, "Have we done all that
we can to insure the safety of our schools?" Keys To Safer Schools.com
is making a special offer to any school to review your crisis planning and
provide a written critique of any shortcomings found. To take advantage of
this offer, mail your school’s Crisis Plan and supporting documents to:
Keys To Safer Schools.com
P.O. Box 296
Bryant, AR 72089-0296.
Visit the Keys website for valuable information and
resource material on school violence prevention at http://keystosaferschools.com.
Programs to Combat Violence
Reported By:
Frank Green
Director
Keys To Safer Schools.com
If
you have any comments or questions please Email us at keys@keystosaferschools.com.
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(501)246-8835
