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Four students injured in Ohio school shooting; 14-year-old suspect arrested, charged

"I heard like a couple of a loud bangs. And then I looked over and one of the kids that got shot liked grabbed his leg. He fell down and the shooter like ran out," eighth grader Shelby Kinnin said.

By Doug G. Ware

MADISON TOWNSHIP, Ohio, Feb. 29 (UPI) -- Four teenage students were injured Monday morning after a 14-year-old classmate pulled a gun and opened fire in the lunchroom, authorities said.

According to police, the shooting began around 11:15 a.m. local time Monday at Madison Jr./Sr. High School in Madison Township, located about 40 miles northeast of Cleveland.

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Cameron Smith, 15, and Cooper Caffrey, 14, were each hit by the gunfire and Brant Murray and Katherine Doucette, both 14, were hit by flying shrapnel while trying to escape the gunfire, WLWT-TV reported.

The suspected gunman was identified as 14-year-old James Austin Hancock.

"He pulled his weapon out, shot two kids in the cafeteria," Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones said. "We don't think they're life-threatening wounds at this time. It appears the weapon that was used may have been a .38 caliber weapon."

A medical official said one of the boys was shot once and the other had multiple gunshot wounds. Neither has required surgery and both are expected to be released in the coming days.

"I was eating with my friends and stuff and we were chatting. I was about to move my chair over and I heard like a couple of a loud bangs. And then I looked over and one of the kids that got shot like grabbed his leg. He fell down and the shooter like ran out," eighth grader Shelby Kinnin said. "There were kids screaming and like crying and everybody ran out of the building,"

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Jones said after the shooting, Hancock ran from the building and discarded his weapon before he was arrested.

"He didn't get very far," he said. "He threw his weapon down. We retrieved that weapon. Our deputy was in school at that time and was in the cafeteria just a short time before that shooting too place."

It wasn't immediately known whether the first two teens shot were intentional or random targets. Authorities said they have an idea as to a possible motive, but declined to give details.

Hancock faces two charges of attempted murder, two counts of felonious assault, inducing panic and making terrorist threats -- all felony juvenile charges.

"It didn't seem like anything was wrong with him," wrestling teammate Jordan Eslick told WCPO-TV. "I was really shocked when I heard it was him."

The school was locked down for a time after the shooting Monday, and officials said the school would be closed Tuesday.

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