A 17-year-old senior was shot and killed near Westbury High School in southwest Houston on Friday morning, with police later detaining a person of interest in connection with the attack.
The victim was named by his family as LePaul Warren, a senior who played football and basketball for the school. He was shot shortly before 8.30am on Dryad Street, close to the junction with Chimney Rock Road and outside the school grounds.
Investigators said a group of young people had gathered in the area, where students sometimes met before classes. A person is believed to have emerged from nearby woodland before words were exchanged and a gun was fired.
Campus police and a member of staff attempted to save Warren’s life before paramedics arrived, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Westbury High School shooting investigation
Houston police said a person of interest had been detained, although no charges had been announced. Officers continued to search for the suspected shooter, interview witnesses and examine surveillance footage from nearby apartment buildings.
About 25 Texas Department of Public Safety troopers were assisting officers as they searched surrounding apartment blocks and wooded areas, according to police. Investigators have not publicly released a description of the gunman or said what led to the confrontation.
Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said the shooting occurred just outside the campus and that there had been no active threat inside the school. Students and staff were kept safe while the investigation was under way.
Westbury High School was placed in “secure mode”, restricting movement in and out of the building, but officials said it was not placed on lockdown because the shooting did not happen on school property.
All after-school activities scheduled for Friday, including the homecoming dance, were cancelled. The district also cancelled Saturday’s homecoming game, while crisis counsellors were brought in to support pupils and staff.
Warren’s uncle, Darwin Prater, said the teenager was well liked and would be deeply missed.
“He’s a good kid, and you can’t say nothing bad about him. He’s just a good kid. He’s going to be loved everywhere, and he’s going to be missed by everybody,” Mr Prater said.
Houston Independent School District superintendent Mike Miles said the school community was “heartbroken” by Warren’s death and that counselling and further support would be available in the days ahead.
