Tag Archives: garfield

Amid changes over gun violence concerns, Garfield High School also banning phones in the classroom

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One of the “cell phone caddies” at Bainbridge Island High School which instituted a similar policy six years ago (Image: BARN Woodworking Studio)

With the new school year, students at Garfield High School are being asked to start class with a new step — checking in and handing over their phones.

As school officials are responding with efforts hoped to make the 23rd Ave campus safer for students and staff, leaders at Garfield have also instituted a new policy they hope will improve the classroom experience and help eliminate harmful distractions while also responding to family concerns about communicating with students in case of emergencies.

“Upon entering the classroom, students are required to silence their phones and store them in the ‘Cell Phone Airbnb,’ where the teacher can easily see them,” a message from school principal Tarance Hart on the new policy begins. Continue reading →

After deadly end to school year at Garfield High, city responds with $14.5 million plan focused on intervention, mental health, and ‘school-based safety specialists’

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Murphy-Paine was remembered as a dedicated athlete and friend gunned down as he tried to keep the peace. Police have not made an arrest in the murder. (Image: Converge Media with permission to CHS)

Mayor Bruce Harrell has announced a $14.5 million effort between the city and Seattle Public Schools with a focus on Garfield High School and ten other district schools “with the highest rates of violence in and around their campuses.”

The initiative comes in response to campus officials and families who called on the city and the district to act to respond to gun violence after student Amarr Murphy-Paine was shot and killed in the Garfield parking lot in the final weeks of the 23rd Ave school’s year amid a wave of shootings across the county involving both young victims and young perpetrators.

The initiatives do not include a plan to restore the Seattle Police “school resource officer” program at Garfield but the district will be deploying additional “school-based safety specialists.”

The announcement comes with the start of school for Seattle’s public system coming next week.

The strategy announced by the Harrell administration will include “school-based measures, violence intervention and community partnerships, and law enforcement support,” the city said, and includes more than $12 million in city spending plus another $2.3 million from public schools to increase access to mental health support, add enhanced school security, hire additional school staffing, and expand violence prevention and intervention services through community-based providers, the city says.

“Students and young people need to feel safe to learn and to grow – this comprehensive set of programs, investments, and actions will support the safety of our youth and community,” Harrell, who graduated from Garfield in 1976 as class valedictorian, said in a statement. Continue reading →

Report: On day of murder in its parking lot, Garfield High School was already in middle of a classroom shooting scare — UPDATE

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The deadly June shooting that killed a 17-year-old in the school’s parking lot has spurred calls for more to be done to address gun violence at 23rd Ave’s Garfield High School.

As families and school officials prepare for the return of classes in September and hoped-for improvements in campus safety, details of another gun incident inside a Garfield classroom only 20 minutes before that deadly shooting have added urgency for real changes and brings questions about the campus response that day.

CHS has learned about the following previously unreported incident from police reports and a person familiar with the situation. Seattle Public Schools has not responded to our inquiries about what happened that day before the afternoon shooting.

UPDATE 9:00 PM: The school district has confirmed it is reviewing the incident and says that the teen involved in the classroom assault “is no longer an SPS student.”

Calling the assault a “very frightening experience for those who witnessed it,” the district says the incident was “dealt with promptly and firmly by the school administrators.” The full statement from Seattle Public Schools is included at the end of this report.

Continue reading →

Family holding public memorial for Amarr Murphy-Paine, teen gunned down in Garfield High School parking lot

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Family and loved ones are inviting the community to join them Sunday in remembering Amarr Murphy-Paine.

The 17-year-old was shot and killed last month as he attempted to break up a fight in Garfield High School’s 23rd Ave parking lot. Police have announced no arrests.

The teen’s family are asking the community to help fill the Holgate Street Church of Christ Sunday afternoon in a memorial for the young man remembered as a student athlete and aspiring music artist. The memorial is scheduled to begin at 1:30 PM.

Interim Chief Sue Rahr says Seattle Police Department detectives continue to work on the case. In the days following the June 6th murder, SPD has said it needed time to process “the large volume of digital data (including video and cell phone records)” collected in the case and that its Community Violent Crimes Task Force was working with the FBI, ATF, DEA, and “many local agencies” to assist in the investigation. Continue reading →

Seattle Public Schools delays campus closure list, considering neighborhood patrols, ID badges, and clear backpacks in response to Garfield deadly shooting

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(Image: Converge Media with permission to CHS)

The major crises of the Seattle public school system are colliding this week as a scheduled announcement of the district’s roster of planned campus closures is being set aside.

The district says it is also beginning to address strong calls from families and principal Tarance Hart for strengthened safety measures following the deadly shooting of a Garfield High School student in the campus’s 23rd Ave parking lot.

From August 2023: ‘Save Stevens Elementary’: Confusion around Seattle Public Schools as district meetings on ‘well-resourced’ campuses continue despite expected funding crisis

“The last several weeks of the school year were challenging. We lost Garfield High School Junior Amarr Murphy-Paine to gun violence,” district superintendent Brent Jones said in Tuesday’s announcement about a shift in plans for the school closure process and the list of proposed shutdown that had been expected to be presented at Wednesday night’s meeting of the Seattle School Board.

“Business as usual in the wake of such a tragedy is unfathomable,” Jones said.

in the announcement, Jones said the district is considering “several safety changes for next school year in our high schools” to “ensure the well-being of our students and staff” including increasing district security and “neighborhood safety organization patrols around our buildings,” requiring identification badges on campus, requiring clear backpacks, and closing campuses for lunch. Continue reading →

Police investigate drive-by gunfire at Garfield end-of-year park party

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As the Seattle Police Department continues to work with law enforcement agencies including the FBI to make an arrest in the case, Garfield High School students found themselves in the midst of another incident of gun violence Friday as they gathered for an end of the school year party just a week after a deadly shooting in the school’s parking lot left a classmate dead.

According to the SPD report on the incident, police were called to the area of Seward Park around 6 PM Friday where Garfield students were gathered for their traditional Purple & White Day party when a vehicle reportedly drove by the crowd and fired a pistol from the vehicle. Continue reading →

Students return to Garfield campus following deadly shooting with increased police presence, calls for more to be done on campus and across city to address gun violence — UPDATE

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(Image: CHS)

There will not be metal detectors or police in the hallways as students return to Garfield High School Tuesday morning but there are pledges by city and community leaders and police to bring to a close a third consecutive spring of gun violence around the 23rd Ave campus following the deadly shooting of student Amarr Murphy-Paine in the front parking lot during the Thursday lunch break. Police also have asked for patience as detectives continue the effort to arrest the shooting suspect caught on school security video who opened fire on the victim at point blank range.

“Following last week’s shooting, we want parents, students and teachers to know they can continue to expect an enhanced presence from Seattle police officers in the neighborhood and near Garfield High School until the end of this school year,” a Seattle Police Department spokesperson said in a statement to CHS.

The 17-year-old Murphy-Paine can be seen on school security video trying to break up a fight before he was gunned down. Murphy-Paine was remembered by loved ones and the communities around Garfield in a Friday night vigil.

SPD’s efforts to arrest his killer continue though official updates are being released at the discretion of detectives.

Little has been said about the effort. Monday night, police asked CHS to repeat the calls for anyone with information about the shooting to contact the SPD Tip Line at (206) 233-5000. Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and interim Chief Sue Rahr said last week it was especially imperative that adults who might information come forward due to restrictions on interviewing minors as witnesses under state law. “Every tip can make a difference,” the department says.

UPDATE: In a midday statement Tuesday, SPD says time is required to process “the large volume of digital data (including video and cell phone records)” collected in the case.

“The Community Violent Crimes Task Force is working with the FBI, ATF, DEA, and many local agencies to assist with the large volume of digital data (including video and cell phone records) which must be identified and analyzed,” SPD says. “Accessing much of that information requires multiple, complex search warrants.”

While the wait for an arrest is hoped to end soon, the efforts to make the area around Garfield safer will continue into summer. The murder comes against a backdrop of a surge in shootings. Gun violence has soared in King County since the pandemic. There were 1,701 “shots fired” incidents across King County reported in 2023 — including 107 homicides involving guns. Both represented greater than 40% jumps

SPD says it will have at least two officers in the area every day through the end of the school year in two weeks but police will not join school district security on the Garfield campus. Continue reading →

Victim in deadly Garfield shooting remembered as city and school leaders face another spring of gun violence — UPDATE: VIGIL

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(Images: Converge Media)

UPDATE — VIGIL: Tears, anger, and questions swirled through Garfield High School’s sports field Friday night as loved ones, friends, and the communities around the Central District school gathered to remember Amarr and call for more to be done to protect the city’s young people. “Who is protecting our babies?,” one sign read atop a pile of flowers that has grown on the steps of the school just steps from where the 17-year-old was gunned down. Friday on the school’s sports field, there were also calls for justice as the victim’s family awaits an arrest in the deadly shooting. “These kids are getting big now and they’re getting taller than us. But they are still kids. They are still learning who they are,” said Dr. James E. Sears III of Grace Temple where Amarr attended church. “These kids need our support. It doesn’t matter if they didn’t come from your house.” “We’re tired of this and the change has to start now,” Sears said. The victim’s mother concluded the vigil by sharing a song she said she sang to her son to bring him comfort and joy. “Amarr, Amarr, you are a star,” it began. Thank you to Omari Salisbury and Converge Media for sharing these images of the gathering with CHS. (Images: Converge Media)

A photo of Amarr being shared by friends and family

The student shot and killed at Garfield High School Thursday has been identified as Amarr Murphy-Paine.

The 17-year-old was gunned down during the school’s Thursday lunch break in the parking lot in front of the Quincy Jones Performance Center as police say he was attempting to break up a fight.

Police have not announced any arrests in the case that has renewed concerns about gun violence around the 23rd Ave high school, the main public high school for the Central District and Capitol Hill neighborhoods.

Murphy-Paine, who was in his junior year at Garfield, is remembered as a member of the school’s football team and an aspiring hip hop artist. “Amarr was not just a football player; he was a shining light in our community. His spirit, heart, and emerging leadership were evident to all who knew him,” Tiffany Bigham of the Garfield High School athletics administration said in a letter to families. “He had a love of game but more so for the friendships it brought into his life. His teammates and coaches were instrumental in being the positive, guiding force that gave him so much hope.”

No benefits or fundraisers have yet been publicly announced to help support the victim’s family. The Garfield Parent Teacher Student Association group says it is working to find out ways to support the family.

As one family suffered a great loss, other families were wondering if it will be safe to send kids back to Garfield. Meanwhile, the school’s prom scheduled for the weekend will go on.

The shooting has also put new attention on the city’s policing and ongoing struggles with gun violence.

Mayor Bruce Harrell and newly installed interim SPD Chief Sue Rahr said Thursday following the shooting that police were limited in their ability to question student witnesses and asked any adults with information to call the SPD tip line at 206-233-5000.

“My heart breaks for the family of the young man shot and killed yesterday in the parking lot of Garfield High School. This tragic, senseless act of violence at one time ended a life and tore a family apart,” Joy Hollingsworth, the District 3 representative on the Seattle City Council, said in a statement. “We are uplifting his family and the entire Garfield community in positive prayer and love.” Continue reading →

Teen dead in shooting at Garfield High School — UPDATE: Mayor and SPD chief try to address gun violence

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(Image courtesy Converge Media)

The school was placed into lockdown during the police response

Seattle Police and Seattle Fire were responding to a shooting involving a student outside Garfield High School during the school’s Thursday lunch break.

SPD confirmed it is investigating a shooting but provided no additional information.

UPDATE: SPD reports a 17-year-old suffered multiple gunshot wounds in the incident and was transported to Harborview in serious condition.

UPDATE x2: SPD says the teen has died: 

Harborview Medical Center has confirmed that despite all lifesaving efforts, the 17-year-old student of today’s shooting at Garfield High School succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased.

Callers reported gunfire outside the 23rd Ave school just after 12:30 PM.

Police were gathering security video to identify any suspects. According to East Precinct radio updates, video showed multiple students who appeared to be armed in the fracas.

UPDATE: Students on the campus were kept at Garfield until police gave the go ahead for a “staggered release” after 3 PM. Multiple SPD vehicles were seen in the area to provide added security as students were released from the campus and 23rd Ave in front of the school was closed to incoming traffic.

The 23rd Ave campus has found itself in the middle of the city’s ongoing struggles with gun violence. In April, a shooter reported firing from an SUV sunroof opened fire on another vehicle as students unloaded from a nearby Metro bus and ran for cover on the nearby campus. There were no injuries.

Seattle leaders held a series of public safety meetings in March amid a continuing surge in gun violence including an afternoon shootout between two vehicles that month that sent a 17-year-old Garfield student caught in the crossfire to the hospital with serious injuries to her leg.

UPDATE: In an afternoon press conference at the nearby Mount Calvary Christian Center, Mayor Bruce Harrell and newly installed interim SPD Chief Sue Rahr addressed Thursday’s shooting and said police presence will be increased in the area.

In his remarks, Harrell blamed the “surge” of guns that is putting too many firearms on his streets while also promising that increased patrols will not mean over-policing.

“Until we address the basic fact that there are too many guns on our streets, and it is too easy to get access to a gun, we will never make sustainable progress on this issue,” Harrell said in a statement issued by his office later in the day.

In March following the fatal shooting of a woman behind the 23rd Ave AutoZone, Harrell called for a state ballot initiative to give the city more leeway to regulate gun ownership

The city’s new interim police chief, meanwhile, said she could not find words to describe the pain around Thursday’s shooting but said the investigation was moving forward quickly. 

Police say there are searching for a “high school-age” suspect in the shooting.

The mayor and Chief Rahr said police were limited in the ability to question student witnesses and asked any adults with information to call the SPD tip line at 206-233-5000.

UPDATE: There will be no school at Garfield on Friday or Monday, Principal Tarance Hart announced Thursday night:

  • Classes at Garfield have been canceled on Friday and Monday. We anticipate students will return to classes on Tuesday, June 11.
  • All after-school activities have been canceled (June 6 – 10).
  • No district transportation will be provided on Friday, June 7, and Monday, June 10.

“Each time I must report an incident of gun violence on or near our campus, it is tough, but this message is the hardest yet to send,” Hart wrote in a message to families. “I am deeply saddened by the violence in our community and profoundly disturbed by the devastating impact it continues to have on our school. This senseless act has left us all shaken.”

Hart says students will be able to access confidential support services and meal services at the Meredith Mathews East Madison YMCA, 1700 23rd Ave, both days.

UPDATE: KUOW has a first-hand account of the shooting aftermath from Christle Young, a mother of a Garfield student and former police officer, who rushed to provide first aid to the young victim and says she is pulling her son from the school.

“I’m just not comfortable sending my son here. It doesn’t seem like they’re equipped to handle situations like this,” Young said.

UPDATE: Parent’s are organizing a “Silent March to End Gun Violence” starting at 9 AM Friday at the Garfield campus with plans to walk to SoDo’s Seattle Public Schools headquarters. UPDATE x2: The march has been rescheduled to Monday afternoon to coincide with a SPS board meeting.

Meanwhile, the school’s planned June 8th prom will go on.

 

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District schedules Central District-Capitol Hill meeting for proposed school closures for Memorial Day weekend — UPDATE: Rescheduled

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Seattle Public Schools is holding a series of community meetings to present its plans to shutter 20 elementary campuses across the city to address budget woes and, the district says, establish “a new foundation of stability and consistency that our students and staff need to thrive.”

The meetings will take place throughout May and June. The meeting for communities around the Central District and Capitol Hill has been scheduled, surprisingly, on Memorial Day weekend. UPDATE: The district has rescheduled the meeting to Thursday, May 30th:

“Our goal is that all schools would include the elements that many of our families, staff, and students said were important during the Well-Resourced Schools Engagement Sessions last fall and earlier this spring,” SPS chief of staff Bev Redmond writes.

CHS reported here on the Seattle School Board’s vote approving a plan from superintendent Brent Jones to consolidate the system’s elementary school campuses from 70 to 50 based on the district’s “Well-resourced Schools” framework it says has been shaped by public feedback and establishes a base level of resources that should be available on every campus including the number of teachers per grade level and additional resources like “education intensive service classrooms.” Continue reading →