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Students greeted with signs of support as classes start back at Timberview after shooting

An injured teacher is released from hospital. The 15-year-old student who was shot remains hospitalized, but in good condition, police say.

As students returned to campus Tuesday at Timberview High School after last week’s shooting, signs saying “Timberview Strong” and “MISD Cares” welcomed them back.

Senior Megan Macias said her first day back was calm, with teachers providing plenty of support and snacks.

“All the teachers were really helping us, didn’t give us too much work to not put more pressure on us and stress,” she said.

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Four people were injured at the campus Wednesday after a fight between two students ended in gunfire. Timothy George Simpkins, 18, turned himself in about four hours after the shooting and faces three charges of aggravated assault. Simpkins posted $75,000 bond and was released from Tarrant County jail last week.

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On Tuesday, there was an increased presence of law enforcement around the school and counselors for students needing someone to talk to about last week, Macias said.

Junior Michael Okuchaba said the first day back since the shooting felt like a normal day of school.

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Okuchaba said he felt comfortable returning to school. He doesn’t see last week’s incident as a school shooting but more of a conflict between two people that happened to be in the building.

“I never really felt anything during or after it,” he added.

A teacher who was among the shooting victims was released from the hospital Monday ahead of the school’s return to classes, police said.

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Arlington police said the 25-year-old teacher was shot when a student pulled a gun from his backpack and fired inside the classroom. Court documents said English teacher Calvin Pettitt told police he jumped in to break up the fight.

The 15-year-old student involved in the initial fight, identified as Zacchaeus Selby, was also shot and remains hospitalized Monday in good condition, police said. Officials have said Selby was critically wounded and was recovering in an intensive care unit after surgery.

Students returned to classes Tuesday with heightened security and police presence, the Mansfield Independent School District said.

“As we move forward, Mansfield ISD is focused on safety and Mansfield ISD is focused on healing,” the district’s superintendent Kimberley Cantu said in a video message Monday. “I’m committed to the safety of every single person that walks into any of our buildings.”

Junior Gabriel Mugoya said a few people were missing from his classes Tuesday, which he attributed to last week’s shooting.

He said that while he feels OK about returning to classes, he knows that many of his classmates are still traumatized. He’s glad the school has counselors and other support at every turn within the building.

As for how the school can prevent further incidents, Mugoya said metal detectors could be a good idea or any security check in general.

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“The police is enough, but basically we need some more security,” he said. “Check us, tell us what’s going on and give us updates if something is happening.”

An investigation into what led to the events Wednesday is ongoing. Police were dispatched about 9:15 a.m. to reports of a shooting in progress at the high school. Witnesses said shots were fired after a fight broke out between two students, one of whom was identified as Simpkins.

The fight was broken up and witnesses said the two students calmed down, but an affidavit says Simpkins pulled out a black firearm from an orange backpack. One witness heard three or four gunshots, while another heard seven or eight, according to court documents.

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The motivations for the fight remain unknown, but family members said Simpkins had been bullied since the beginning of the school year.

“We take allegations of bullying in Mansfield ISD very, very seriously,” Cantu said in the video message.

The school, about 20 miles southwest of downtown Dallas, is in the city of Arlington but part of the Mansfield school district. Mansfield ISD includes parts of Mansfield, Arlington and Grand Prairie.