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2 kindergarteners wounded in Northern California school shooting and gunman identified, sheriff says

Kindergarten students recovering from school shooting identified
Kindergarten students recovering from school shooting identified 03:53

PALERMO – Two kindergarten students who were wounded in a school shooting in the Northern California community of Palermo have been identified along with a suspect, Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said Thursday.

Six-year-old Roman Mendez suffered two gunshot wounds that resulted in internal injuries and 5-year-old Elias Wolford was shot in the stomach and suffered internal injuries, Honea said. The boys remain in critical condition.

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Five-year-old Elias Wolford (left) and 6-year-old Roman Mendez (right) were wounded during a shooting at the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists in Butte County on Wednesday, Dec. 4. Butte County Sheriff's Office

The suspect in the Wednesday afternoon shooting at the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists was identified by the sheriff as 56-year-old Glenn Litton. Litton had a lengthy criminal history and attended another Adventist school as a child in the nearby town of Paradise, Honea said. 

Litton was found by a California Highway Patrol officer Wednesday with a self-inflicted gunshot wound; a handgun was next to the suspect. The Butte County sheriff's office confirmed that the suspected shooter had died. 

Latest condition of students

The two kindergarten students shot Wednesday were taken to a Sacramento-area hospital in "extremely critical condition," Honea said.

"I am thankful that they are still alive but they have a long road ahead of them," Honea said.

On Thursday, the sheriff's office said the boys were now in "critical but stable" condition.

Oroville Mayor David Pittman said in a statement that "the entire staff, students, and families have also been emotionally traumatized after this incident."

"Sadly, our schools must plan and train for these kinds of events and pray they never occur," he said. "Our schools must be safe places."

The Butte County Office of Education offered to provide crisis response staff to work with local school administrators to help reopen the school. 

sixth-grade student told CBS News Sacramento that she helped her teacher comfort younger students as the gunman was outside the classroom. 

What we know about the suspect

Sheriff's deputies have said they don't believe there is any connection between the suspect and the victims.

Honea said that Litton was dropped off at the school by an Uber driver. Investigators are interviewing the driver to learn more about what led up to the suspect being dropped off at the school.

Honea also added that investigators are looking into whether the suspect called the school a few days ago to schedule an appointment with an administrator on Wednesday. The reports indicate the suspect then showed up trying to enroll a child but deputies don't believe a child was with him. 

After the meeting with the administrator on Wednesday, gunshots were heard, Honea said.

The shooting appears to be isolated to the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists, but Honea said he provided other law enforcement agencies in California with information and told them to be vigilant in monitoring Seventh-Day Adventist schools as it appears the school may have been targeted due to its affiliation.

The students were taken to the gymnasium until authorities could bring school buses to the scene. They were then taken to the Oroville Church of the Nazarene, where they were reunited with their families.

The school serves about 35 students from kindergarten to eighth grade. Honea said there was not a security officer stationed at the school as that's not part of the everyday routine.

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Scene of the shooting investigation. 

The FBI responded to help the Butte County Sheriff's Office with the investigation. Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said it and other state agencies are also helping local officials. 

Palermo is a town with a population of over 5,000 people just south of Oroville. It's about 30 miles south of Chico and 65 miles north of Sacramento.

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