A new surveillance video released on Tuesday shows the principal of Pauls Valley High School in Oklahoma, Kirk Moore, physically tackling an armed former student who had opened fire on campus, in an act that authorities described as heroic and that prevented a massacre.
The incident occurred on April 7 at approximately 2:19 p.m., when Victor Hawkins, a 20-year-old former student of the center, gained entry to the building because someone inside opened a locked door for him, apparently unaware that they were facilitating access for an armed assailant.
According to the arrest affidavit, Hawkins attempted to shoot a student upon entering, but the gun did not fire.
He then moved behind a vending machine, emerged, and fired a shot. One student fled running, while another remained seated with their hands raised, pleading with him not to shoot.
It was at that moment when Moore left his office and lunged at Hawkins, knocking him down onto a lobby bench.
The video shows Hawkins pointing the gun directly at the director's head as the latter charged at him determined to stop him.
During the struggle, Hawkins fired and injured Moore in the leg. An assistant principal came to the rescue, took the weapon, and brought it to an office, while Moore restrained the attacker until the police arrived.
No student was injured. Moore was airlifted to a hospital in Oklahoma City, received treatment, and was discharged; he is currently recovering at home.
Mo Canady, executive director of the National Association of School Resource Officers, did not hold back praise: "I have to start with a huge thank you to that principal. Taking that action upon seeing the danger to his students, his staff, and others in the building... that's heroic. There's no doubt he has gone above and beyond."
Judicial documents reveal that Hawkins was inspired by the Columbine massacre of 1999 and intended to shoot students and staff before taking his own life.
The video also revealed a serious failure in security protocols: the person who opened the door did not act in collusion with Hawkins, as confirmed by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, but rather believed they were doing a favor for someone who needed to enter.
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