Cops: 4 Students Shot at Michigan Middle School Football Game

Published January 13, 2015

A shooting near a middle school football game left a high school student in critical condition and injured three other people, officials said Thursday.

A 16-year-old boy was shot in the neck about 5:15 p.m. Wednesday near South Middle School, Detective Sgt. Brent Vanderhaar said. He was in critical condition Thursday, said Safiya Mosley, a Saginaw Public Schools spokeswoman.

The three other victims, two adults and another high school student, were treated and released, some after being grazed by bullets.

Police were questioning a 15-year-old boy whom Vanderhaar described as a "person of interest." The boy remained in custody Thursday morning, said Detective Sgt. Mark Lively.

Police also on Thursday were searching for the gun used in the shooting, Lively said.

Mosley said the two wounded teens attend Arthur Hill High School, as does the person police suspect in the shooting.

Vanderhaar would not say whether the wounded 16-year-old had been targeted by the shooter, but did say the other victims apparently were bystanders walking from the game.

"It's unfortunate that children with guns have to ruin something as nice as a football game," Police Chief Gerald H. Cliff told The Saginaw News. "We are not going to sit idly by and let it happen."

Messages seeking comment from Cliff and additional information from police left Thursday by The Associated Press were not returned.

About 100 people were attending the game when the gunfire erupted at halftime, Vanderhaar said. Players and spectators were moved toward the center of the football field immediately after the shootings, Mosley said. They were allowed to leave after police indicated the situation was under control.

Classes were held Thursday at the middle school under stepped-up security, Mosley said. She said crisis counselors were available to students needing them. Arthur Hill High previously had increased security, she said.

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