Mich. student, 13, who killed himself to be remembered

Elisha Anderson, Gina Damron and Tammy Stables Battaglia, Detroit Free Press | USATODAY

DETROIT -- Classmates and community members will hold a candlelight vigil Thursday night in Southgate, Mich., to remember a 13-year-old who used a handgun to commit suicide in a bathroom at his middle school Thursday morning.

The boy shot himself once with a .40-caliber handgun at Davidson Middle School in Southgate around 8 a.m. -- stunning the community and leaving students, police and school officials looking for answers.

Southgate, a community of about 30,000 in Wayne County, Mich., is about 16 miles south of Detroit.

"Everybody who wants to pay their respects to him is going to come with a candle," said 13-year-old Delaney Agee, a friend of the teen, who plans to attend the gathering.

It's a way to show him how many people cared about him, she said.

The student -- whose name was not released by school officials or police -- was found by another student, according to an official with the school district.

He left behind a suicide note that was found after the teen was rushed to the hospital, where he later died, Southgate Director of Public Safety Thomas Coombs said.

It was written as an open letter explaining that by the time it was read, he would have killed himself, he said.

Coombs said the teen used the word "drama" to describe his life, but the student didn't offer specifics on the issues he was apparently having trouble dealing with and said taking his life was a way out.

The gun, which was not locked, belonged to a family member and the teen knew where it was and took it, Coombs said.

The student told a teacher he had to use the restroom, and was the only one in the bathroom at the time of the shooting, police said.

Delaney said she talked to him on the phone often, and had plans to go to a movie with him and a few other friends on Friday. He never told her he was upset about anything.

"It didn't seem like anything was wrong," Delaney said. "Just to know that he is gone is really heartbreaking and shocking."

Teachers were alerted after the shooting and the school was locked down. Students scurried to the corners of classrooms, ran down the hallways and were ushered to the gym. They were, eventually, released to parents and guardians.

As school leaders grapple with what happened, the shock and sadness has hit social media, where fellow students asked for people to pray for their classmate's family.

"I wish you knew how much we all love and care about you," one student said in a Twitter post.

"Just yesterday I hugged him," another tweeted. "I remember what he wore & he looked so happy. Now he's gone."

Students described the harrowing scene at the school after the gunshot rang out and the school was locked down.

Karina Moise, 14, went to the gym with members of her Spanish class.

"We just kept seeing people running down the hallway," she said.

She described the victim as a friendly boy she knew from her lunch period.

"Happy for the most part; always laughing," she said. "He was really nice. He would offer to give you stuff (from his lunch)."

Classes won't resume at the school until Monday when counselors will be present.

Southgate Community Schools Superintendent William Grusecki said the district doesn't have any indication that the youth was being bullied and said he never went to staff to report any issues or problems.

"We don't have a very good idea of what happened yet," he said hours after the shooting.

Grusecki called the teen a very good student who was somewhat popular.

Police said they have talked with his friends and bullying has not been mentioned.

"We have no reason at this time to understand why," Coombs said Thursday afternoon.

Relatives declined to comment.

Southgate Police Detective Sgt. David Fobar, the investigator in charge of the scene at the school, said the boy showed no signs of being suicidal.

"It was a normal day," said Fobar. "Even the kids that drove him to school, no indication."

Investigators have spoken to parents of the teen and plan to continue to investigate, Coombs said.

The school does not have metal detectors, but school officials will examine whether changes need to be put in place over the next few days.

Contributing: Eric D. Lawrence, Detroit Free Press

More Details: Suicide Hotline

National Suicide Prevention lifeline: 800-273-8255

Among the warning signs of suicide are: