GADSDEN, Ala. — An “aggressive” man who tried to get into an Alabama elementary school was shot and killed by a school resource officer Thursday.
The incident happened at Walnut Park Elementary School in Gadsden, which is about 40 miles from the Georgia border, according to ABC 33/40.
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A person who was passing the school called 911 after seeing a man go to several doors to try to get into the school. The principal locked the school down and called a school resource officer and several other agencies for backup.
The SRO got into a tussle with the man, who tried to take the officer’s gun. The Sheriff’s Office said the officer shot the man outside school. The man, who has not been identified, was pronounced dead at the scene. The SRO was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
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There were around 40 children at the time of the shooting who were at the school as part of a summer program. All of the children were safe and accounted for.
“It’s the kind of call you don’t want to get,” said Gadsden City Schools Superintendent Tony Reddick. “You definitely have concern about something potentially traumatic that happens.”
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It’s unclear what the man’s intention was or if he was armed.
The shooting comes a week after 19 students and two teachers were gunned down at a Texas elementary school when a gunman forced his way inside.
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