A second victim, a 14-year-old boy, died from his gunshot wound Thursday afternoon after a lone gunman shot two people dead and wounded three others at the Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, California. The other student killed was a 16-year-old girl.
All the victims are students at the school located 40 miles from downtown Los Angeles. More than 2,480 students attend Saugus High School, which is one of the largest high schools in a school district with 24,400 students.
The gunman, also a student at the school, later shot himself in the head after pulling a Colt .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol from his backpack and quickly shooting five students, apparently at random, before turning the gun on himself. A regular Colt. 45 carries seven rounds in a standard magazine.
The Santa Clarita Sheriff's Department (SCSD) confirmed Thursday was the gunman's 16th birthday. The gunman remains in critical condition at a local hospital. They have not yet been able to discern a motive for the shooting.
Local officials praised SCSD for its quick response to the shooting. They said police got the call of a shooting taking place at the Saugus High School at around 7:38 a.m. PST and were on campus a scant two minutes later. In that short span of time, however, the shooter had managed to shoot five of his fellow students and himself. There is a video of the entire shooting.
SCSD is viewing a video of the incident and is talking to witnesses, including the gunman's girlfriend and her mother. Police have been to the gunman's residence.
Some analysts said this murder-suicide was apparently well-planned since the gunman quickly shot five people and himself -- six persons in total -- with a pistol that carries only seven rounds in less than two minutes. The .45 ACP round is known for its great stopping (or killing) power
"We do have the suspect in custody," said Los Angeles Country Sheriff Alex Villanueva. "He is currently being treated at a local hospital. He is a student, a 15-year-old male Asian."
"No a deputy was not responsible... it appears to be the student himself," answered Villanueve when asked if the gunman had been shot by one of his deputies.
Saugus High students have been very loud and vocal in their call for stricter gun control. After the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida on Feb. 14, 2018, Saugus High students joined thousands in nationwide walkouts in March. They left their classrooms for 15 minutes to protest gun violence. In April, students hosted a gun control town hall with local leaders advocating safer schools.
Hannah de Caussin told CNN she was stunned a shooting happened in their Saugus neighborhood.
"This is a safe area and we are all shocked," she said.
