ROCKVILLE, Md. — The family of a high school student shot inside his school bathroom in January is suing Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for alleged negligence.
DeAndre Thomas, now 16, was shot in a bathroom stall at Col. Zadok Magruder High School in Rockville by his classmate Steven Alston on Jan. 21, while surrounded by a group of teenagers. He spent months recovering in the hospital, undergoing 10 surgeries, and only recently returned to school.
Alston plead guilty and is awaiting his sentence. He was 17 at the time of the shooting, but was charged as an adult with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony/violent crime, possession of a dangerous weapon on school property and possession of a firearm by a minor.
RELATED: Former student pleads guilty after shooting 15-year-old classmate at Montgomery County high school
Police have since said that the teen boys had an ongoing argument, and during a January bond hearing, prosecutors alleged that Alston had planned to settle it in the bathroom. MCPS had no school resource officers on campus at the time of the shooting, leading Thomas’ mother to say the school is partially responsible:
"You have a bunch of kids that haven't been socialized, who are just getting back to being around each other after two years," Karen Thomas said. "And there was really nobody there to contain it."
MCPS has not replied to WUSA9's request for comment on this lawsuit.
Magruder High School pricipal Lee Evans wrote an email to parents Wednesday, which can be seen below:
" Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), in collaboration with staff from Col. Zadok Magruder High School (Magruder HS), continues to analyze the shooting that occurred in our building on January 21, 2022. As a school and a system, we learned a great deal from this disturbing incident and have incorporated essential changes to school safety and emergency communications. Over the last several months, MCPS met with parents, school staff, and central office staff to hear about their experiences on that day. The community has expressed an interest in coming back together to provide an update on additional findings and safety procedures related to the incident at Magruder HS.
MCPS will hold a meeting for families in the Magruder HS community on Wednesday, November 30, 2022, from 6:00–8:00 p.m. in the Magruder HS auditorium. Those in attendance will have the opportunity to hear more specific information and receive answers to questions that have emerged over the last several months."
(MCPS) released an "after-action" report months after the shooting. According to the report, the high school's Security Team Leader (STL) found Thomas in a boy's bathroom just before 1 p.m. after seeing the students running away.
As the STL entered the bathroom while other students ran out, the STL found Thomas heavily bleeding from a gunshot wound in the lower abdomen/pelvis area. The STL was able to help save Thomas with the use of an available "Stop the Bleed Kit."
According to the Stop the Bleed website, a "Stop the Bleed Kit" was developed with manufacturers in the hemorrhage control industry and the military. A basic kit includes items to help create a tourniquet and help control bleeding. Click here to learn more.
Officials described the initial situation as "complicated," saying that Thomas would not tell the STL what had happened to him or who the other students in the bathroom were.
The report claims staff called 911 within minutes of finding Thomas.
School officials say they reviewed CCTV footage to help identify the students who were seen running from the bathroom. The video then led to officials identifying a then-11th-grade student, Alston, as the alleged shooter. Staff believes Alston was inside a classroom when the school went into lockdown. He was later taken into custody by the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD).
SWAT officers claim Alston had broken down a "ghost gun" into different components and the firearm was no longer operational.
The violent incident that happened on Jan. 21 has since spurred conversation and action, like gun buyback programs, as a result.