'We are forgiving': Family of 15-year-old stabbed to death at Southeast Raleigh High School grieves loss, holds no ill will
Southeast Raleigh High School was closed Tuesday and will be closed again on Wednesday after violence on campus took the life of a 15-year-old student.
Family and friends of the boy who was stabbed to death at school told WRAL News his name was Delvin Ferrell, and he was a freshman.
On Monday night, a small group gathered in his neighborhood to honor his life.
Ferrell's family released a statement, saying, "We are a grieving family and trying to process this. It is a tragedy all around. We are a forgiving family and don’t hold any ill will."
They said Ferrell was a good kid who enjoyed sports and video games.
Loved ones and community members have begun leaving supportive messages and sharing memories on Ferrell's obituary page at Richard Harris Funeral Home.
"A young man I knew from birth. I never forgot you," wrote one person. Another referred to him as one of her 'little ones.'
The family plans to remember Ferrell with a balloon release at the Heritage Park Apartments near downtown Raleigh at 5 p.m. on Wednesday evening.
Another student, age 16, was also injured and is hospitalized.
Video shows 14-year-old, Tyquan General Jr. wildly swinging a knife, striking two students and then walking away from the fight. His parents tell WRAL he had been bullied and was trying to protect himself. He could be charged as an adult.
Police said there was a fight involving several students, but they did not give the exact number involved.
Video taken by students shows multiple perspectives of the fight, which seems to have started outside the gymnasium and then spilled inside, with students following the fight as it unfolded.
Students can get free lunch Wednesday
The school will offer an optional, hot grab-and-go lunch for students between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Students can come to the bus loop off Creech Road and come to the cafeteria doors.
Also on Wednesday, the Southeast Raleigh YMCA will open their building to host any Southeast Raleigh students, and lunch will be provided. Students can go anytime between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Students should sign in at the front desk and will be asked to provide an emergency contact name and phone number.
Mother of double stabbing suspect says her son had been scared at school
WRAL News spoke with Cherelle McLaughlin, the mother of the student seen in those videos swinging a knife. She told WRAL News her son was acting in self-defense and claimed he was concerned for his safety at the school.
McLaughlin said she informed the school about the potential danger to her son, warning them that he could get attacked.
"I informed the school earlier that something may happen. I informed them that morning," she said. "I told them something may happen, boys may threaten to jump him. They didn't get to him fast enough."
At one point, the video shows multiple students seeming to attack her son. She feels the video makes it clear he was defending himself and that he was scared.
Police and school officials have not explained exactly who or what started the fight.
District Attorney says 14-year-old could be tried as an adult
Raleigh police have obtained a secure custody order for a 14-year-old juvenile suspect who is also a student. District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said a juvenile secure custody hearing would take place on Tuesday. Since the teen is accused of murder, it is her intention to transfer this case to Superior Court to try the 14-year-old as an adult.
Freeman says state law directs that, once a probable cause hearing takes place, 14-year-olds charged with first degree murder are transferred to superior court.
"We are at the beginning of this process," Freeman said. "I would anticipate in the near future this case will be transferred."
Freeman said she is doing what she can to make sure the case moves forward efficiently and in a way to brings justice to the victim's family, and that they will continue to evaluate evidence as investigators work through the case.
She said the rise in very young people being charged with juvenile murder is very concerning.
Other parents say they don't feel safe with their students at Southeast Raleigh High School
WRAL News spoke to several parents after Monday's tragedy. After the death on campus, some parents are feeling anxious about how safe their students are at school.
"With all the situations that have happened at Southeast Raleigh High School, I'm going to remove my daughter from the school," said one parent. "I love their curriculum."
This parent, who did not want to be identified, said she feels the school did no have adequate security.
"Even from the video alone, it seemed like it took a long time for the administrator, teacher, adult to get there," she said. "I don't feel safe sending my kid to school. No parents should have to send their kid to school and wonder if they are going to come back alive."
McLaughlin also feels the school failed her son and the victims. She says he didn't bring a knife to school and had been telling her he was afraid.
"I feel terrible. The whole situation is terrible. I feel bad for the other family, but in return, I feel bad for my son because he was fighting for his life," said McLaughlin. "I just don't think it should have happened like that."
Another mother at the school said, "The young man, I don't think he should have had to go that route to bring a knife to school, and for the other young man, I don't feel he should have had to lose his life."
Data shows Southeast Raleigh has more arrests than other schools
Data shows Southeast Raleigh High School has a far higher rate of criminal acts and arrests than the rest of Wake County or the state of North Carolina. During the 2022-2023 school year, Southeast Raleigh High School has 30.84 criminal acts per 1,000 students, compared with only 9.45 from in Wake County Public Schools and 8.77 in North Carolina. Arrests are also 1.47 at Southeast Raleigh High School, compared with .49 in Wake County and .09 in North Carolina.
During the 2021-22 school year, 3,292 students were reported for bringing a weapon to a North Carolina public and charter school campuses, usually a knife, according to the state Department of Public Instruction, which compiles annual data on reportable criminal offenses in schools. The data shows the number of students reported for an offense, not necessarily the number of criminal incidents that occurred. The latest year of available data is from the 2021-22 school year, when the total was up from some recent years but less than a decade ago. During the year, 62 students were reported for an assault involving a weapon, up from the year before but less than a decade ago.
In the Wake County Public School System, five students were reported during the 2021-22 school year for assault using a weapon at school, while 442 students were reported for bringing weapons to school. Eight students were reported for bringing a firearm to campus.
Wake County doesn’t use metal detectors, some of which could detect some knives. Traditional metal detectors could cost millions of dollars and prompt long lines to get into school. Some newer weapons detection systems often don’t catch knives.
Raleigh to host national conference on active threats in school
From Wednesday through Friday, the Hilton at North Hills will hold a national conference on active threats in schools.
The conference was scheduled before Monday's deadly stabbing.
"Schools have to understand that any type of tragedy can hit every day," said Curt Lavarello the executive director of the School Safety Advocacy Council.
Lavarello served 25 years in Broward County, Florida, where the Parkland mass shooting happened, killing 17 people and injuring 17 others.
"Everybody focuses on never wanting to be a Parkland or Uvalde school district with mass casualty victim count," Lavarello said.
Lavarello said the council focuses on helping schools have awareness of what could happen, what to look out for and how to find early warning signs. He called Wake County a very proactive district. Often, students speaking up can prevent tragedies from occurring.
WRAL News asked Lavarello what his opinion was on weapons detection systems.
"It’s a very complex issue when you talk about a walk-through metal detection system when you see what you see at our airports," Lavarello said. "Oftentimes, it’s just a Band-Aid but not really an effective measure to ensure that schools are safety."
Lavarello said weapons detection systems can create congregations of people, which can pose a risk.
"The simplest way is get to know your kids," Lavarello said. "Talk to your kids because in most school shootings and serious incidents we’ve had in this country, a kid has talked about it before it’s happened, and there’s a real possibility of reducing those in the future."
Podcast: Matt Talhelm explains how the tragedy unfolded at Southeast Raleigh High School
Listen as WRAL's Matt Talhelm, one of our reporters on the scene, explains how the tragic events unfolded at Southeast Raleigh High School.
