United States: a school principal saves the lives of several students by immobilizing an armed shooter

On Tuesday, April 7, a former student of Pauls Valley High School in Oklahoma entered the school campus armed with firearms, with the intention to kill.

A tragedy was narrowly avoided. According to NBC News, the former student, Victor Lee Hawkins, 20 years old, entered the high school on that day armed with two semi-automatic pistols taken from his father. Upon arrival in the hall, he ordered everyone to get on the ground and attempted to shoot a student. A malfunction in his weapon prevented him from doing so. A second attempt also failed.

Surveillance cameras captured Kirk Moore, the school principal, rushing out from behind a door and pinning the assailant down on a bench. With the help of the vice principal, Moore managed to immobilize the attacker and disarm him. During the struggle, the principal was shot in the leg but is now recovering, as reported by NBC.

“This doesn’t surprise me, but it’s still incredible. I have no doubt that he saved these children’s lives,” stated Don May, the local police chief, in an interview with NBC.

The assailant confessed to investigators that he intended to “commit his own school shooting, like the shooters at Columbine,” referring to a 1999 shooting at a Colorado high school that resulted in 14 victims along with the two teenage perpetrators. Hawkins admitted that he planned to kill both students and teachers. He is now facing charges of attempted murder.

In a statement, the principal said, “Like many other teachers in the country, we prepare for these events through training and thorough threat assessments. I am grateful to have been able to rely on my instinct, training, and the hand of God.”