Alabama teen charged in death of schoolmate Courtlin Arrington
It appears that the mystery behind Courtlin Arrington’s death is now coming to light.
The 17-year-old girl was shot and killed in a fatal school shooting on Wednesday afternoon. Authorities at the time were calling the incident an “accident” and details were kept private until recently.
Michael Jerome Barber, 17, was charged with manslaughter on Friday.
The charge came in after authorities had a chance to thoroughly review the security footage of the incident.
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In a press statement revealed to DailyMail, Jefferson County District Attorney Michael Anderton said that Barber had been charged for carrying “a pistol onto the campus of Huffman High School and recklessly causing the death of Miss Arrington.”
Barber was reportedly showing off his gun to his classmates at Huffman High School in Birmingham before it “accidentally discharged” and fatally struck Courtlin Arrington.
Barber’s bail is currently set at $75,300. No lawyer representation has been revealed as of yet.
Superintendent Lisa Herring confirmed that the school has over 43 points of entry that have metal detectors in place, but for an unknown reason at this time, they were not in use on the day of Arrignton’s death.
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“We have not only heightened our procedures, but we are revamping and revisiting, with an extreme amount of urgency, those protocols,” said Herring at a news conference Thursday. “Not just for Huffman High School, but for every single school in Birmingham.”
Moments Of Chaos
During a press conference, Birmingham Police Chief Orlando Wilson revealed that two teenagers were shot during dismissal time at Huffman High School, an incident that is being called an “accident” by officials on Wednesday.
Courtlin Arrington was preparing to graduate in May and had been planning to pursue her dream to become a nurse. She was given CPR at the scene of the “accident” and on the way to the hospital, but was never revived. She would have turned 18 next month.
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The other victim, a 17-year-old boy, is a junior at the school and a member of the football team. He was shot in the leg and was initially said to be in critical but stable condition. He was also later questioned by the police and released from the hospital, according to local AI News.
A school employee was identified as the third victim, but only sustained minor injuries and was treated on the scene.
The school briefly went into lockdown mode.
At the time, it was still unclear what happened.
Remembering Courtlin
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey released a statement Wednesday evening about the student’s death.
“I am praying for the family of this young lady who has tragically lost her life way too early. Every life is precious and, even though this was an accident, it reaffirms that there is no place for students to have firearms or other weapons on campus.”
The incident has rocked the Alabama community.
“We’re not just talking about some person, we’re talking about losing a part of our future,” said Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin about Arrington’s death, “Our hearts are heavy.”
The Mayor asked that all city facilities fly flags at half-staff. “My thoughts and prayers remain with this young lady’s family, friends, Huffman family, and community,” he said via Twitter.
