Two teenagers were shot outside the gym at Frederick (Md.) High School at about 8 PM on Feb 4, during a junior varsity basketball game between Frederick and Governor Thomas Johnson high schools, the Baltimore Sun reports.
Neither victim was a student at Frederick High School, and the 14- and 15-year-old boys were treated for injuries at Baltimore’s Shock Trauma. The injuries were not said to be life-threatening.
Although no motive has been determined and no suspects had been arrested as of this writing, some people have speculated the shooting may be related to school team or even gang rivalry.
“We have rival neighborhoods and this was a rivalry game, Fred High vs TJ, so there’s angles that are possibilities and we’re going to be exploring those as we go forward,” WBAL-TV (NBC affiliate) quoted Frederick police Capt. Richard Hetherington as saying.
No other students were injured in the shooting, and school officials closed both Frederick High School and nearby West Frederick Middle School on Feb 5. Counselors will be available on Feb 6 as students return to school.
“I’m hoping they find out this was not school related,” the Sun quoted the head of a security company that provided two unarmed guards for the game as saying. “I think everyone was well pleased with the actions after the incidents. There is zero ways to prevent this. You can report it, you can protect. There’s no guarantee. … I don’t know what could have been done differently.”