East High shooting: Coroner confirms body is suspect’s as students plan protest

The Board of Education has replaced its Thursday meeting with an executive session about school safety.
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Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas speaks with parents, some visibly angry, after a shooting at East High School. March 22, 2023.
Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

The Park County Coroner's Office has confirmed that a body near the vehicle of the suspect in the East High shooting is the alleged gunman. Its statement did not state how the 17-year-old died.

Prior to the shooting, the student was being searched by administrators as part of a school safety plan. They found a handgun during the search, and as it was being confiscated, shots were fired.

Denver police executed a search warrant at the suspect's home Wednesday afternoon but did not find him there. Investigators later located his vehicle in Park County, southwest of Denver, around 6 p.m.

The two administrators injured in the shooting were on their way to recovery Thursday morning. Jerald Mason works in restorative practice at the school. He was treated and released from the hospital Wednesday evening. Dean of culture Eric Sinclair suffered more severe injuries and was in serious condition yesterday. He underwent surgery and is now stable.

Paramedics were already on the scene at the time of the shooting, due to an unrelated allergic reaction at the school. That allowed Mason and Sinclair to quickly receive medical attention.

Classes at East High are canceled for the rest of the week, and the Denver Public School district is set to begin spring break Monday. Students will have a bit more than a week to collect themselves before returning to class.

Rather than staying home Thursday, some student groups are planning a repeat of their march to the state capitol earlier this month. That protest drew hundreds of participants following the death of 16-year-old Luis Garcia, who was shot near the school in February and died March 1 after being taken off life support. Today's protest will begin at 10 a.m.

Denver Public Schools Superintendent Alex Marrero said after the shooting that he would post armed police officers at all district campuses through the end of the school year, even though the city removed school resource officers in 2020.

The Board of Education has canceled its Thursday meeting and replaced it with an executive session about school safety.

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