A student stabbed another student with “a small kitchen knife” at Bret Harte Elementary School in Sacramento on Monday morning, according to school officials.
The student who was stabbed was taken to a local hospital where they are being treated for “a small puncture wound to the shoulder,” Principal Dr. Roxanne Wolfe said in a message to parents on Monday afternoon. They are expected to make a full recovery, Wolfe added.
The student who is believed to have committed the stabbing was referred to “immediate and appropriate disciplinary action, in addition to other potential legal consequences,” Wolfe said. The Sacramento Police Department said they are actively investigating the attack, and that the student responsible is currently in their custody.
“This is both shocking and profoundly scary for our entire school community,” Wolfe said. “Our priority right now is to focus on the recovery of the injured student and provide emotional support for any students who witnessed the incident.”
Bret Harte Elementary School is in the Sacramento City Unified School District and serves Curtis Park and Oak Park students between kindergarten and sixth grade.
District communications officer Brian Heap said the incident occurred in a class that had both fifth and sixth graders.
“The student was removed from the classroom right away, we notified law enforcement right away,” he added.
Heap said the district’s students' support services team responded to the situation and counselors have been made available for “as many days as they’re needed.”
“Right now, what our focus is is on the well-being of the student who was stabbed as well as any of the students who actually witnessed the incident,” he added. “We want to make sure that they get the emotional support services that they need right now.”
The student responsible for the stabbing will be referred to the district’s student hearing and placement team for immediate disciplinary action that will likely result in a suspension or expulsion, according to Heap.
“I think there was a lot of shock, [and] certainly people [are] scared. But that’s natural, right?” Heap said. “How could you not be scared when something like this happens in an elementary school?”
Meghan Casey, a parent of a third-grade student, said her body “went cold” when she heard about the stabbing.
“[School officials] did say in the initial announcement that all the kids were safe, so that’s reassuring,” she said. “And then you’re just waiting to hear more news.”
Casey said she would be picking up her daughter, who she said typically stays for after-school programs, early because of the incident.
“I don’t know what the circumstances are, if there’s like a history or if it’s just some small incident,” she added. “But I’m hoping that everybody’s okay and it’s just an isolated incident.”
Jacqueline Garner, executive director of student support and health services for the district, noted that the district has 13 rotating mental health crisis response teams.
“The teams are made up of our district-wide school psychologists and school social workers,” she explained.
Garner said the teams are provided with training so they know how to respond to situations like this.
“The sooner that we can go in and help stabilize our students and staff and help them feel more secure and help them process what happened, we can help prevent long-term impacts of trauma.”
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