Student Shoots 2 Administrators at Denver High School

DENVER—A 17-year-old student shot and wounded two administrators at his Denver high school Wednesday as they searched him for weapons, a daily requirement because of the boy’s behavioral issues, authorities said.

The student fled and his vehicle was later found in a remote mountain area about 50 miles southwest of Denver, but he remained at large. A shelter in place order was issued by authorities around the small town of Bailey, in Park County.

“He obviously is armed and dangerous and willing to use the weapon, as we’ve learned this morning,” Denver Mayor Michael Hancock warned as law enforcement searched for the student, Austin Lyle.

Amid the flurry of criticism over lax security, Denver school officials said after the shooting that they would once again put armed officers into the city’s public high schools.

The shooting happened just before 10 a.m. in an office area as Lyle was undergoing a search as part of a “safety plan” that required him to be patted down daily, officials said.

One of the wounded administrators was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon and the second remained in serious condition, said Heather Burke, a spokesperson for Denver Health hospital.

There were no school resource officers on campus at the time of Wednesday’s shooting, Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said.

After Wednesday’s shooting, two armed officers will be posted at East High School through the end of the school year, and other city high schools also will each get an officer, said Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero.

In a Wednesday letter to the city’s Board of Education, Marrero said his decision violated district’s policies but added he “can no longer stand on the sidelines.”

“I am the leader of this district who is charged with keeping our scholars and staff safe every day,” he wrote. The school board said it supported the decision.