TOWNVILLE, S.C. — A 6-year-old boy shot at his South Carolina elementary school Wednesday remained in critical condition Thursday.
Jacob Hall was at recess with his class at Townville Elementary School when police say a 14-year-old opened fire, hitting Hall, another student and a teacher.
A family friend wrote on Facebook that the bullet severed Hall’s artery. He was airlifted to the hospital in Greenville.
His grandfather told Channel 2’s Tony Thomas Thursday that it’s not looking good.
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Everybody in this small town of about 4,000 is praying for Hall. %
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“He's going to be a fighter. We just want him to know we are all thinking about him,” Tiffany Lecroy said.
Both of Lecroy’s daughters were inside the school when the shooting happened.
“We just hid in the bathroom and we stayed quiet,” one daughter said.
“We saw cops running up and down the halls,” the other said.
Investigators are working to learn what led up to the shooting. They say the teen, identified as Jessie Osborne, shot and killed his father before going to the school. They are still trying to figure out why Osborne, who was home-schooled, chose the elementary school as a target.
“Yesterday our community, we experienced a very life-changing event,” fire chief Billy McAdams said. %
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McAdams and another volunteer firefighter, Jamie Brooks, were the first to arrive on the scene. Brooks tackled the shooter while the chief ran into the school and tried to help the victims.
“My reaction to this event was no different than any other fire or law enforcement personnel who put their lives on the line,” McAdams said.
The wounded teacher and second student have been released from the hospital.
School in Townville has been canceled for the week.
Osborne will face a judge Friday morning.
Cox Media Group
