Shane Halligan

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Shane Joseph Halligan (February 1990 - December 12, 2006) was an 11th grader at Springfield Township High School who killed himself on December 12, 2006, by bringing an AK-47 to school and shooting himself in the head with it.^[1]

Halligan volunteered as a junior firefighter and wished to join the National Guard. However, according to media reports, his parents stated that if his falling grades did not rise, he would not be allowed to participate in extracurricular activities.

At around 9:19 am, Halligan brandished an AK-47 assault rifle and fired several warning shots into the wall and ceiling of the hallway outside the second-floor science and math classrooms. He told surrounding students and staff to run. He explained that he had no intentions of ever hurting anyone. Once all students and staff were inside classrooms, Halligan walked through the interior hallways of the school. He then shot himself in front of a display case between the library and Spanish classrooms. A suicide note addressed to his parents was found in his pocket. Details regarding the content of the note have not been released to the public by law enforcement.

That day, impromptu memorial services were held on the school's campus. On the following day, grief counselors were brought in by school district administrators, and classes were held on a restricted schedule for the remainder of the academic week.

[edit] References

^ Larry Eichel, Peter Mucha, Susan Snyder and Christine Schiavo. "Student kills himself at Springfield High" (HTML), The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Media Holdings, LLC, 2006-12-12. Retrieved on January 31, 2007. (in English)