Jared Padgett, the 15-year-old boy who killed a classmate and wounded a teacher in a school shooting at Reynolds High School on June 10, used his older brother’s rifle, a .223 caliber AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, according to court documents.
A search of the home of his father, Michael Padgett, in the 18000 block of Northeast Coach Street in the Rockwood neighborhood on the day of the shooting revealed numerous other firearms — shotguns, rifles, handguns and knives — apparently unsecured, throughout the home.
This revelation is the result of the Thursday morning release of court documents — the “affidavit for search warrant” and the “return of search warrant” — by the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.
The affidavits describe how the shooting at Reynolds High School unfolded, and how the investigation quickly led police to the Padgett home.
Through the police investigation, officers learned Jared shared a bedroom with his older brother, Lucas, who had recently returned from serving in the U.S. Army in Afghanistan and who is a member of the U.S. Army Reserve.
In their bedroom, police found “multiple knives” under the bunk bed in the room, and in the closet found several boxes of ammunition, a sword, a Daisy pellet gun and a .22 caliber rifle.
On one of the beds, police found a booklet titled “Operation Military Kids,” a program that helps military families deal with deployment.
In another bedroom, police found in the closet a .22 caliber revolver, a .22 caliber rifle, a .300 Winchester magnum rifle, a shotgun and boxes of ammunition.
The search warrant states that after the shooting, Lucas Padgett went to a staging area for parents to look for his younger brother, but went home when he couldn’t find him.
“Mr. Lucas Padgett went home and saw that his rifle was not in the bedroom where he left it and no explanation as to where it may be,” the affidavit states. Lucas Padgett also told police that a duffel bag and guitar bag that were found at the school after the shooting belonged to him, according to the report.
The search warrant also describes a police interview after the shooting with Reynolds High freshman Austin Trichos, 15.
It states that Trichos saw Jared Padgett get off the bus carrying a guitar case and duffel bag.
“Mr. Trichos said he noticed whatever was in the guitar case was probably not a guitar based on the heavy weight of the items and the odd weight displacement,” the warrant states, and “the guitar case was suspicious.” Trichos told police he often heard Jared speak of owning and shooting guns, including an AR-15 rifle.
Jared Padgett’s locker at the school also was searched, but revealed only a pair of shoes and a T-shirt.
Police also searched the home for other evidence including medical records of the shooter, computers and other electronic devices including cell phones, electronic journals and cameras, as well as school and financial records. Those items also were seized.
