Students, parents rally outside of Garfield High School to end gun violence

SEATTLE — Safety is at top of mind for dozens of parents and students, one week after a Garfield High School student was shot at a bus stop.

Dozens of protesters gathered Wednesday outside of the high school calling for the violence to come to an end.

“We always fear that it was the innocent bystander, it’s a drive by, it’s a mass shooting that kids are going to be running from and that this was a situation,” said Janey Lee Petty.

Petty’s daughter is a senior at Garfield High School. With the violence surrounding the school, she’s always concerned for her daughter.

“And that’s exactly what happened, from a nightmare reality or a nightmare turned real - this is what happened,” she said.

Last Wednesday, a 17-year-old girl was shot in the leg while waiting at the bus stop. Seattle Public Schools confirmed that the she is a student at Garfield High School.

According to the Seattle Police Department, at about 3 p.m., officers responded to the report of a shooting in the 400 block of 23rd Avenue.

Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz said that at about 2:40 p.m., an SUV was traveling southbound on 23rd Avenue and Jefferson when shots were fired from the car.

“We ended up having to go into a lock-in and as the news was going on, we were trying to figure out what was happening. It was quite scary,” said student Alynn Harris.

Harris is a senior at Garfield High School who was on campus when the shooting happened. She was in a club meeting when they were all told to shelter in place.

“I have friends who are at the bus stop so it’s like anybody can be at the wrong place at the wrong time and get shot,” Harried explained.

KIRO 7 spoke with loved ones of the 17-year-old victim, off-camera, who say she is recovering and expected to be okay.

Students tell KIRO 7 there was a school assembly Wednesday to talk about gun violence, but parents believe that it’s simply not enough.

Some parents say they want to see change in traffic or bus pickups for students so they’re away from the busy street. Other parents say a police presence near campus might help too.

Victoria Beach, a Public Safety Liaison with the Seattle Police Department, told KIRO 7 it’s important to call attention to the problem. However, she says there’s other hands-on ways to help.

“Come out and patrol the grounds also. I was at a meeting a year ago and a lot of parents said we’ll be there, nobody ever showed up and that’s something parents can do,” she said.

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