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Two juvenile petitions filed after gunshot fired inside Cary High School bathroom

Investigators have filed juvenile petitions against two juveniles they found to be responsible.

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WRAL staff
CARY, N.C. — No one was injured Wednesday morning after a shot was fired inside a bathroom at Cary High School.

Cary police responded to the call at 11:38 a.m. at 638 Walnut St. where they discovered damage to the bathroom. Students or staff were not injured, police said.

Investigators have filed juvenile petitions against two juveniles they found to be responsible.

Cary police said one gunshot was fired into a bathroom toilet.

Classes continued at Cary High School after the code red lockdown was lifted around 1 p.m. Wednesday. However, some parents arrived at the school to pick up their children. School dismissed at its normal time of 2:18 p.m.

A release from the Cary Police Department said officers conducted a thorough sweep of campus for possible weapons and evidence.

Cary High School has a student resource officer, who was first to respond to the scene. The school does not have metal detectors.

The case will now be turned over to the Wake County District Attorney's Office.

Police said there is no threat and are continuing to investigate. Anyone with information is asked to call Cary police at 919-469-4012.

Student and parent reaction

Several students told WRAL News they initially thought it fireworks in a toilet, including seniors Briana Loesten and Everett Quinto.

"I heard a toilet was broken," Loesten said.

Loesten said it seemed like a normal school day up until the lockdown.

"Usually, it's just a short drill," she said. "They never tell you when it is actually a drill."

Loesten said she remained in lockdown for more than an hour.

Quinto explained what happened.

"Over the announcements, [Principal] Mr. [Nolan] Bryant came on and said there was a code red drill," Quinto said. "It was scary a bit, but no one heard gunshots [that] I knew of."

Parent Jacquelyn Little spoke with WRAL News about Wednesday’s shooting.

“It made my heart drop,” Little said. “I didn’t know what was going on.”

Little was thankful the kids are safe.

“Anything could have happened,” Little said. “You think everyday kids going to school, they aren’t expecting to go through these situations. It’s mind-blowing.”

State data about school weapons

In the 2021-22 school year, Cary High School didn't have any incidents related to firearms or weapons in school or on school grounds, according to the North Carolina Deportment of Public Instruction (DPI) records. Last school year, the school had one reportable crime: Alcohol on campus.

Last year, throughout the state, DPI records show there were 54 incidents where a firearm was reported on school grounds and 974 reports of other weapons.

This is a developing story. Refresh the page and tune into WRAL Evening News starting at 4 p.m. for the latest information.

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