13-year-old shot at Oakland school, suspect in custody

A 13-year-old was shot at an Oakland school on Monday afternoon and another youth has been taken into custody, the East Bay Times reported.

The victim was in stable condition and being prepared for surgery, the Times reported. The shooting occurred at Madison Park Academy in the city’s Sobrante Park neighborhood at about 1:19 p.m. The school, part of the Oakland Unified School District, serves 750 students in grade 6-12 with a focus on engineering and design.

The juvenile suspect ran away, but police “were able to quickly and safely take the shooter into custody as well as provide medical aid to the student,” Oakland police Chief LeRonne Armstrong said at a press conference Monday afternoon.

It was not immediately clear if the shooting occurred inside the building or on school grounds.

Armstrong decried Monday’s violence, the Times reported. “It saddens me to even think that a kid would bring a gun to school,” the chief said. “No parent wants to send their kids to school and then be called saying your kid’s been shot. It’s the worst thing that you can hear.”

Oakland is seeing a drastic spike in homicides and violence this year. Five people were killed in the city over the past weekend.