America’s close relationship with gun violence never ends. On Tuesday, the week after a school shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, claimed the lives of 17 people and left many more wounded, schools in the Jackson Local School District in Stark County, Ohio, were placed on lockdown after an unnamed 7th grader shot himself in the Jackson Memorial Middle School men’s restroom.
The apparent four elementary schools in the district were left closed for the duration of the day, whereas students at the middle and high school in the area were released slowly but surely after the incident, which took place just before 8 AM.
There are no immediate reports as to the boy’s condition and whether or not the shooting was accidental or intentional.
CBS’ Cleveland affiliate WOIO reported that at a 2 PM news conference, authorities revealed that the student had a “distraction device” in their backpack. The device was apparently meant to make a bang or create some smoke but not to cause harm; in other words, it wasn’t a bomb.
Besides the remaining questions about the boy’s condition, it’s also not immediately clear where he obtained the weapon.
The incident comes after at least 75 Americans aged 11 and under and 392 Americans between the ages of 12 and 17 have been injured or killed in incidents of gun violence this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive — a number that does not, apparently, include self-inflicted injuries.
In the aftermath of the recent Parkland shooting, the president has restrained himself when it comes to reforming gun policy to banning bump stocks, which make semi-automatic weapons more like automatic weapons.
BREAKING: President Trump says he’s directed AG Sessions to clarify if bump stocks are illegal and to propose regulations to “ban all devices that turn legal weapons into machine guns.” pic.twitter.com/cnZ2mc08TF
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 20, 2018
