TOWNVILLE, S.C. — A teenager who killed his father at their home Wednesday was stopped by a volunteer firefighter as he opened fire outside a South Carolina elementary school, wounding two students and a teacher, authorities said.
The teen was apprehended within minutes of the shooting in this rural town about 110 miles northeast of Atlanta. One student was shot in the leg and the other in the foot, Capt. Garland Major with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said. Both students were male. The female teacher was hit in the shoulder.
“We are heartbroken about this senseless act of violence,” said Joanne Avery, superintendent of Anderson County School District 4. She canceled classes for the rest of the week.
Authorities said the shooting spree began at the teen’s house about two miles from the school, where he gunned down his 47-year-old father, Jeffrey Osborne. Authorities have not released the suspect’s name or age.
Crying and upset, the teen called his grandmother’s cellphone at 1:44 p.m., Anderson County Coroner Greg Shore said. The grandparents couldn’t understand what was going on, so they went to his home just 100 yards away. When they got there, they found Osborne had been shot and their grandson was gone.
About one minute later, authorities received a 911 call from Townville Elementary School.
Sheriff John Skipper said the shooter drove a vehicle into the school parking lot and immediately started firing a handgun as he got out and moved toward the school. He did not know who the vehicle was registered to, and did not say how many shots were fired.
The shooter never entered the school building, though, and was apprehended by firefighter Jamie Brock, a 30-year veteran of the Townville Volunteer Fire Department
Authorities did not release a motive for the shooting and said they weren’t sure if the students and teacher were targeted. The sheriff said the teen had been homeschooled.
