Texas High School Stabbing Update: Fatal altercation started when victim and alleged killer bumped shoulders in school cafeteria, report says
(CBS/AP) SPRING, Texas - A fatal stabbing early Wednesday at a suburban Houston high school started with the alleged killer and the victim bumping shoulders in the school cafeteria, CBS affiliate KHOU reports.
The alleged attacker, 17-year-old Luis Alonzo Alfaro, has reportedly been charged with murder and appeared in court early Thursday, where an attorney recounted the version of events he allegedly told Harris County Sherriff's Department investigators after the incident.
Alfaro reportedly said he started arguing with the victim, Joshua Broussard, when the two bumped into each other during school at Spring High School in Spring, Texas. He said he shoved Broussard, and then Broussard's friend threw a punch. That's when Alfaro reportedly said he pulled a pocket knife from his shorts and swung it in a " back-and-forth motion" as he covered his face with his other arm.
After the stabbing, Alfaro allegedly said he fled.
Broussard, also 17, was killed. Another victim, 16, was transported to the hospital in critical condition, but was later upgraded to good condition and released, reports the station. Two others suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
In court on Thursday, Alfaro's bond was set at $150,000.
Alfaro's father spoke to KHOU, saying he "had no idea" where his son might have gotten a knife.
"How are you gonna blame us for something that almost an adult is doing? It's not our fault, it's not the parent's fault, it's not parenting," he said. "You can't monitor kids 24/7."
He added, "Is he going to pay the price for it? Probably."
Parent Tara Campbell said she received text messages from her daughter about the fight and that her daughter said students who witnessed the episode snapped cellphone photos of the victims as they lay on the ground.
Campbell said she intended to have her daughter home-schooled, saying she's grown tired of fights at the school.
"Last year there were gang fights consistently," she said. "This is ridiculous. This is an ongoing situation."
At a press conference Wednesday, Spring Independent School District Superintendent Ralph Draper defended the district's actions, saying they focused on two goals -- securing the school and making sure no action was taken to compromise the investigation -- before communicating information to parents about what had happened. He said students were not immediately released because some of them were potential witnesses who needed to be interviewed by investigators.
"Every parent sends their child to school believing school should be one of those safe haven places," Draper said. "This is what we spend our nights and days working toward and what I lose sleep over.
"In my nearly 30-year career, this is the one thing you pray never to experience."
