A 17-year-old senior was shot and killed near Westbury High School in south-west Houston on Friday morning, prompting a search for the gunman and a heightened security operation around the campus.
The victim was named by his family as LePaul Warren, a final-year student who played varsity football and basketball. The shooting took place shortly before 8.30am on Dryad Street, just outside the school grounds near an apartment complex opposite the school’s athletic fields.
Police said the area was commonly used by students gathering before lessons. A person reportedly emerged from nearby woodland before an exchange of words preceded the shooting.
Campus police and a member of staff reached Warren and attempted lifesaving measures before paramedics arrived, but he died at the scene.
Search for Westbury High School shooting suspect
The suspect remained at large on Friday, with no description officially released. Officers were carrying out door-to-door inquiries, speaking to witnesses and reviewing surveillance footage from nearby properties.
Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said investigators had obtained video and were working to identify the person responsible. Twenty-five Texas Department of Public Safety troopers were also assisting officers as they searched nearby apartment buildings and wooded areas.
Witnesses told local media that the gunman may have been wearing black clothing and a ski mask, although police have not confirmed those details.
“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,” Warren’s uncle, Darwin Prater, said.
Prater said Warren was talented across several sports and was known as the life of the party.
Westbury school placed in secure mode
Westbury High School was placed in secure mode while police investigated, meaning movement in and out of the campus was restricted. Officials said the school was not placed into lockdown because the shooting happened off campus, and that pupils and staff inside remained safe.
Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles said the district was “heartbroken” by Warren’s death and would provide counselling and additional support to pupils and staff.
After-school activities on Friday, including the homecoming dance, were cancelled. The school’s homecoming game scheduled for Saturday was also called off.
Crisis counsellors were available at the school on Friday and were due to return on Monday as the Westbury community dealt with the death.
