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Injuries not serious following school stabbing in Edwards

EDWARDS, Colorado – No serious injuries were reported Tuesday following a stabbing at Battle Mountain High School.

As a precaution, the victim was taken by ambulance to the Vail Valley Medical Center where he was treated and released, school administrators said in a statement emailed to parents.

After he was stuck in his upper chest near his shoulder, the victim walked down to the school nurse’s office looking for some medical attention, alerting the staff of the incident. As a precaution, he was taken to the Vail Valley Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition with non-critical injuries, said Undersheriff Mike McWilliam, with the Eagle County Sheriff’s office.



“School Resource Officer Megan Richards along with school nurse Brenda Lamitie and school administrators responded swiftly and appropriately to ensure that the injured student received prompt care. Local law enforcement also responded to apprehend the other student quickly,” school administrators said.

The school has only a handful of fights involving students each year, said Battle Mountain principal Phil Qualman. Most of those end up being shoving and shouting matches, he said.

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“Safety remains our top priority and physical altercations at BMHS are extremely rare,” Qualman said.

The statistics bear him out. In the 2011-12 school year, Eagle County schools saw only two incidents that required law enforcement to get involved.

More than 6,000 students attend Eagle County schools, and almost half of them are in the district’s two public high schools.

What happened

Tuesday’s incident occurred at 2:05 p.m., culminating an argument the two boys had been having the previous class period. The assault occurred when they crossed paths in an upstairs bathroom between periods.

McWilliam said the alleged assailant used an implement in the attack. Deputies recovered a set of bloody scissors they believed were used in the attack, McWilliam said.

The alleged assailant fled the school, bolting out through a door on the west side of the building. He left the school grounds headed west, and headed to the seldom-used railroad tracks a few hundred yards from the school.

He didn’t get far. By 3:15 p.m. he was in custody, McWilliam said. He was walking along the railroad tracks when deputies spotted him and took him into custody, McWilliam said.

Parents of both students were notified and came to the school, where they were united with their children, school administrators said.

Deputies questioned students who witnessed the incident, and are investigating the history between the two, McWilliam said.

“At this point, we believe the incident is limited to the two students involved,” school administrators said.

Parents of Battle Mountain High School students were notified by email, since it was too late to send home a physical letter.

The alleged assailant was being held without bond in the Eagle County jail, booked on charges of first-degree assault with a deadly weapon. He will be transferred to a juvenile facility in Denver until a District Court judge decides how to proceed with the case, McWilliam said.

The alleged assailant, 15 years old, was already on probation for another assault, police said.

Staff Writer Randy Wyrick can be reached at 970-748-2935 or rwyrick@vaildaily.com.


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