Teacher shot and killed at Tacoma, Wash., elementary school; suspected shooter also wounded

Teacher killed at Tacoma, Wash., elementary school

TACOMA, Wash. — A spokesman for the Tacoma, Wash., school district says a special education teacher was shot and killed at an elementary school before children arrived Friday.

Spokesman Dan Voelpel says the woman was shot at about 7:35 a.m. at Birney Elementary. A suspect may also have been shot by police.

A woman who answered the phone at the school said no children were present at the school when the shooting took place. School usually begins at 9 a.m.

The Tacoma News Tribune reports there was another shooting in the Fredrickson area that is connected to the school shooting.

Police spokesman Mark Fulghum told the paper the suspect and the victim know each other.

The school has about 400 students in grades K-5.

AP Writer Donna Blankinship contributed to this story from Seattle.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — A shooting at an elementary school in Tacoma, Wash., injured a teacher before students arrived Friday morning.

Tacoma School District Spokeswoman Nikol Cartledge says a medical crew is working on her.

The News Tribune of Tacoma reports the woman was shot at Birney Elementary, and a suspect may also have been shot by police.

Police spokesman Mark Fulghum told the paper the shooting was reported about 7:35 a.m. Friday at the school. No students were at the school at the time.

The paper says there’s another shooting in the Fredrickson area of Pierce County that is connected to the school shooting.

Fulghum told the newspaper that the suspect and the victim know each other.

Information from: The News Tribune, www.thenewstribune.com