Hero Ore. Teacher Who Threw Phone at School Shooter and Wrestled Him for Gun Breaks Silence: ‘Happened So Fast’

Cassidy SchutzCredit: Bend-La Pine Schools

Cassidy Schutz, the teacher who wrestled with the Oregon elementary school shooter, is speaking out

“This is not a story,” she said. “This is a horrific and heartbreaking tragedy, and it is our real lives”

One teacher and three students were killed in the shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend on Oct. 15

An Oregon teacher who helped stop a shooter at an elementary school earlier this month is speaking out.

In a statement released on Friday, Oct. 30, Cassidy Schutz, a certified learning specialist at Silver Rail Elementary School, who wrestled with the shooter for his gun and threw her phone at him, said there were “no words to describe the depth of sadness I am feeling following the events of October 15th.”

“This is not a story,” she said in a statement released by Bend-La Pine Schools. “This is a horrific and heartbreaking tragedy, and it is our real lives.”

On that day, authorities alleged 16-year-old Griffin John entered the elementary school in Bend, Ore. and opened fire, killing 25-year-old teacher Megan Lambert and three students — a 5-year-old, an 8-year-old and an 11-year-old.

A 54-year-old teacher and 7-year-old student also sustained critical injuries and were transported to the local hospital.

Silver Rail ElementaryCredit: Payton Bruni / AFP via Getty

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Schutz said her thoughts were “with those who were lost, their families, those who were hurt, and those who were there that day. My heart is with you. It all happened so fast, and I wish with everything in me that we had more time. The pain of this loss I will carry with me forever. There are no words for this unimaginable reality we are facing.”

Her focus, she said, was on “these families, our team, our school, and my own healing. As I continue to navigate this, I ask that you please give me the time, space, and privacy I need to heal. I will not be making any additional public statements at this time.”

John was fatally shot by Kaylub Giamanco, who watched him “enter the school and pursued him,” said Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and police in an Oct. 15 press conference.

At a briefing after the shooting, Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz said Schutz “almost certainly helped prevent more bloodshed,” Krantz said, ABC News reported.

Source: Crime