PALERMO, Calif. (AP) — Two children were in “extremely critical condition” Wednesday after being shot at a tiny religious K-8 school in Northern California and the gunman died at the scene, apparently from a self-inflicted gunshot, police said.
The gunman may have targeted the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists in Palermo because of its religious affiliation, but isn't believed to have had a prior connection to the victims or the school, Butte County Sheriff Kory L. Honea said. He didn’t explain further.
“Whether or not this is a hate crime or whether or not it’s part of some sort of larger scheme at this point I don’t have enough information to provide an answer to that,” he said.
The wounded children, boys ages 5 and 6, are kindergarteners at the school and are being treated at a trauma center in the Sacramento area, officials said.
“I am thankful that they’re still alive, but they’ve got a long road ahead of them," Honea said.
The shooting occurred shortly after 1 p.m. at the private Christian school with fewer than three dozen students in Palermo, which has about 5,500 people and is about 65 miles (104 kilometers) north of Sacramento.
It was the the latest among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in Newtown, Connecticut, Parkland, Florida, and Uvalde, Texas. The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms.
But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws. Firearms were the leading cause of death among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.
Honea said the gunman was dropped off by an Uber driver who is being interviewed by detectives.
He said the shooter was in a meeting with an administrator about enrolling a child at the school, which he described as “cordial.” But it seems that was his first visit to the school and he had no prior connection to the victims. Shortly after that, shots rang out, Honea said.
The gunman's body was found near the slide and other playground equipment on the grounds of the school, which abuts ranchland where cattle graze. A handgun was found nearby, Honea said.
Honea said they were trying to contact the shooter’s family before releasing his name.
Laurie Trujillo, a spokesperson for the Northern California Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists, said in a statement that they were “deeply saddened by the events that occurred today at our Feather River school.” She added that they are grateful to the sheriff’s office for acting quickly to protect the students.
The Seventh-Day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination in which members consider the Bible their only creed and believe that the second coming of Christ is near. The Feather River School has been open since 1965, according to its website.
After the shooting, authorities rushed students initially to a gymnasium where they stayed until a bus arrived to take them off the grounds and to the Oroville Church of the Nazarene to be reunited with their families, Honea said.
Travis Marshall, the senior pastor for the Oroville Church of the Nazarene, called the reunification between parents and their children “very moving.”
“Some of the children were incredibly emotional,” he said. “One woman was raising her hands up, praising the Lord” when she found her child.
Sixth grader Jocelyn Orlando described what happened to CBS News Sacramento.
“We were going in for lunch recess and basically everybody in my classroom heard shooting and most people were screaming,” she said. “We all went into the office, we closed the curtains, locked the doors, basically did what we would do in a school shooting, and then one of the teachers came and we all ran into the gym.”
Assemblyman James Gallagher, whose area includes Palermo, said his “heart is breaking for everyone impacted by this tragedy.”
“As a community, we’ll all be hugging our loved ones closer today as we pray for the victims and try to make sense of something so senseless," he said in a statement.
Police officers stand near a body covered by a tarp outside of Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP)
Police officers stand near a body covered by a tarp outside of Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP)
Police tape blocks a road outside the Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP)
Emergency personnel state outside the Feather River Adventist School after a shooting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (Michael Weber/The Chico Enterprise-Record via AP)
BERLIN (AP) — Leon Goretzka scored twice for Bayern Munich as it beat Wolfsburg 3-2 and retained a four-point lead in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Bayer Leverkusen kept pace by beating Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1 in the late game, when Florian Wirtz starred again with two goals and setting up Patrik Schick for the third.
Goretzka fell out of favor at Bayern last season but reminded the club’s bosses of his qualities by scoring twice for the first time since March.
“What he showed is that you always have to deal with your situation professionally. It's not just Leon. It always happens in a squad or over a career,” Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said. ”If you do your work and stay calm, your qualities will always come to the fore. For us, it's great."
Kompany's team started well with Leroy Sané striking the crossbar, then Harry Kane forcing a save from Kamil Grabara in the Wolfsburg goal.
But it took Goretzka to open the scoring in the 20th after surging through the middle of the field before firing inside the far post. Goretzka’s second goal in the 62nd – coming after Michael Olise’s goal in the 39th – proved to be the winner after Mohammed Amoura scored twice for Wolfsburg.
The Algeria forward's second goal in the 88th set up a nervy finale, but Bayern held on for its fourth successive win.
Leverkusen's bosses needed no reminders about Wirtz's quality – the young Germany star played an integral role in Xabi Alonso's team's unbeaten run to the championship last season, and he's doing it again for its title defense.
“We don't need to talk about his qualities,” Gladbach captain Julian Weigl said. “He played another top game today. We didn't manage to stop him.”
Wirtz played the ball through Gladbach defender Ko Itakura’s legs before shooting the opener in the 32nd, converted a penalty in the 62nd, then gave Schick an easy finish to seal the result in the 74th.
Tim Kleindienst scored Gladbach’s consolation in stoppage time.
It was Leverkusen’s 11th straight win across all competitions. The Bundesliga champion next visits Atlético Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.
“We want to keep the run going, to win as many games as possible,” Wirtz said.
Leipzig squandered a three-goal lead at last-placed Bochum as Dutch forward Myron Boadu scored a 13-minute second-half hat trick for the home team.
“I'm very happy. I've never experienced fans like this before,” said Boadu, who's on loan at Bochum from French side Monaco. “You want to do everything you can to give them a good weekend and a good week. You can never write off Bochum.”
Bochum remained on the bottom, but it has claimed all but one of its 10 points since the experienced Dieter Hecking was appointed coach in November, and can potentially overtake Holstein Kiel next weekend.
Stuttgart capitalized on Leipzig's draw with a 4-0 rout of Freiburg to overtake Leipzig and move to fourth, the last place for Champions League qualification.
It's Stuttgart's third successive win to start the year, including Wednesday's defeat of Leipzig, now a point behind Stuttgart in fifth.
Also, St. Pauli defeated relegation rival Heidenheim 2-0 away, and Hoffenheim won at Holstein Kiel 3-1.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Leverkusen's Patrik Schick, right, and Gladbach's Stefan Lainer fight for the ball. during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Moenchengladbach, at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Federico Gambarini/dpa via AP)
Leverkusen's players celebrate their side's opening goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Moenchengladbach, at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Federico Gambarini/dpa via AP)
Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz, right, and Gladbach's Julian Weigl fight for the ball during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Moenchengladbach, at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Federico Gambarini/dpa via AP)
Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz scores during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Moenchengladbach, at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Maximilian von Klenze/dpa via AP)
Vfl Bochum players celebrate after Bochum's Myron Boadu scored his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and RB Leipzig in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Vfl Bochum players celebrate after Bochum's Myron Boadu scored his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and RB Leipzig in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Bochum's Myron Boadu, left, celebrates with Bochum's Tim Oermann after scoring his side's opening goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between VfL Bochum and RB Leipzig in Bochum, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Munich's Leon Goretzka, left, scores scores the opening goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Bayern Munich and VfL Wolfsburg in Munich, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)
Munich's Leon Goretzka (center) celebrates with Dayot Upamecano (left) and teammates after scoring during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Bayern Munich and VfL Wolfsburg in Munich, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)
Bayern's Leon Goretzka, left, celebrates with Leroy Sane after scoring his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Bayern Munich and VfL Wolfsburg in Munich, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)
Munich's Leon Goretzka celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between FC Bayern Munich and VfL Wolfsburg in Munich, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP)
