Hemera/Thinkstock(RENO, Nev.) — The family of a Nevada high school student who was shot by police this week as he allegedly wielded a knife and threatened other students is questioning whether the officer could have subdued the teen without firing a weapon.
The teen, whose name is being withheld because he is a minor, is hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said, as police investigate the incident.
What Police Say
Reno Police Department Chief Jason Soto said at a press conference Wednesday night that a 14-year-old male student at Hug High School was “armed with at least one knife and threatening other students” in an outdoor school courtyard that day.
An officer employed by the Washoe County School District responded to the scene and ordered the teen to drop the knife, Soto said. When the student failed to comply with the verbal commands, the officer fired one shot, “striking the student and … stopping the threat,” Soto said.
The officer “immediately began to provide medical aid” to the wounded student until emergency responders arrived, Soto added.
Following the shooting, the officer involved was placed on paid administrative leave, in accordance with the Washoe County School District Police Department’s policy, a Reno Police Department statement said.
Reno police told ABC News on Thursday that the officer had “some nonlethal options” on his utility belt when he pulled his gun and shot the teenager. Police could not confirm specifically what type of nonlethal means were available to the officer at the time of the shooting. But some possibilities could include a Taser or pepper spray.
The police department said there is no standard response for the use of lethal force; the department only hopes the force used would be proportional to the threat.
The chief of the school district’s police force, Jason Trevino, urged that the public not jump to any conclusions about what led to the shooting based on video footage of the incident that was posted on social media. The clips show the student slashing a knife, possibly more than one knife, in the air as other students stood in a circle around him. Seconds later an officer arrives and a single shot is fired.
“Please remember that these accounts don’t tell the complete story. This is an ongoing investigation and, as such, we won’t be able to release any details,” Trevino said at a school district press conference Thursday.
What School Officials Say
Washoe County School Superintendent Traci Davis praised the quick response by law enforcement which she said kept students safe.
“The event that occurred at Procter Hug High School yesterday was heartbreaking for our Hug High family and community,” Davis said at the press conference Thursday.
She said she would like “to thank our dedicated officers with the Washoe County School District Police Department who acted so quickly to protect the safety of our students. Had it not been for their quick action and professionalism, I truly believe that the outcome could have been much worse for our students.”
What the Family Says
The attorney for the student’s family is questioning why the officer used his gun.
Lawyer David Houston said the boy is a special needs student who was bullied at school and that he may lose a lung or suffer brain damage from the shooting.
The father posted on Facebook on Wednesday night following the shooting, saying his 14-year-old son brought knives to school to defend himself.
“You have a very mentally unhinged student attempting to keep people away from him by swinging knives in the air,” the lawyer, Houston, said. “If that’s worthy of execution, then I guess I’m standing on a different platform than those people that think it appropriate to shoot a child.”
What Experts Say
ABC News chief legal analyst Dan Abrams said investigators will be looking at the chain of events leading up to the shooting, including what prompted the teen to wield a knife and threaten other students and what impelled the officer to pull the trigger.
“Any time there’s an officer-related shooting, there’s going to be an investigation. There’s going to be a very serious one here,” Abrams said on ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Friday. “The question’s going to be exactly what else did this officer have, for example a Taser? If he did, why couldn’t he have used the Taser instead of firing his weapon?”
Abrams said the boy’s family won’t be the only ones asking questions about what led the officer to fire that shot.
“It’s going to be some of the families of other kids who were there. That could certainly end up leading to some sort of civil lawsuit down the road,” he said.
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