Three other students ran to another classroom. Anderson entered the classroom “without saying anything” before he opened fire and then turned the gun on himself, Burguan said.
Advertisement
Eight-year-old Jonathan Martinez was rushed to the hospital along with Brandy, but died before reaching surgery.
Marsden said the new rule applies only to North Park, and the district will review possible larger application later.
Anderson, 53, walked into the special-education classroom and fired 10 shots with a.357 Magnum, targeting his wife but also hitting two of her students.
Rachel Valles, whose 8-year-old son Ethan was a student in Smith’s class, said the boy had struggled with reading and math until he started in Smith’s class in August. As investigators pieced together who Anderson was, his history of domestic violence came to light.
More from CafeMom: San Bernardino Shooting Suspects Had a 6-Month-Old Baby: How Could They?
Michael Dorn, executive director of Georgia-based Safe Havens International, said schools can also minimize risk by not posting teachers’ names on doors and not posting student artwork with their names at classroom entrances.
Police say he said nothing and opened fire on his wife with a large-caliber revolver.
She saw Smith, 53, slumped over at the desk where she had been sitting with her group. The students were bused to California State University’s San Bernardino campus after some were escorted out of the school by police.
Parents reportedly rushed to the school after hearing about the shooting, but children were evacuated and reunited with their families at a nearby high school.
The murder-suicide is horrific enough, but the damage done to the psyche of those children-all of them special needs-may last a lifetime. As of 9pm EST on Monday evening, he is in stable condition, police said. When he failed to win her back, he shot and killed her, police Chief Jarrod Burguan said.
Ken Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services, said that one of the best practices to ensure school safety comes down to dedicating more time to training teachers and staff.
Police were still interviewing witnesses in their investigation, a police spokesman said. Smith, whose life was taken by her estranged husband, is just one of the stories of domestic violence that take place in the United States every day.
Joyella Beuler, who teaches third grade at North Park, spoke on behalf of the school staff and said they wanted to return to the campus. We understand why Smith recently left Anderson and was planning to divorce him.
Praise was heaped on teacher JoyElla Bueler who helped save Nolan Brandy’s life.
As a 911 operator transfers the call to school police the caller immediately identifies the shooter as Karen Smith’s husband giving a description to police.
Debra Natera told the board her child has attended North Park since kindergarten and now is in fifth grade.
Advertisement
At least two students have been airlifted to a hospital.
