Second suspect charged in Lone Star College shooting

A woman embraces a Lone Star College student after he was evacuated from the campus following a shooting at the north Harris County school Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013, in Houston. ( Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle ) less A woman embraces a Lone Star College student after he was evacuated from the campus following a shooting at the north Harris County school Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013, in Houston. ( Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle ... more Photo: Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle Photo: Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 69 Caption Close Second suspect charged in Lone Star College shooting 1 / 69 Back to Gallery

A second suspect has been charged with two counts of aggravated assault in the shooting at Lone Star College.

His name has not been released because he is not in custody, officials said Thursday morning.

Authorities charged the first suspect, Carlton Berry, 22, with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in the Tuesday afternoon shooting at the North Harris campus of Lone Star College.

During a news conference, Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia said investigators have gathered information leading them to believe a second person may be involved in the incident. He also added that authorities are still searching for the pistol they believe was used in the shooting.

Garcia said at least 10 shots were fired during an argument between Berry, who investigators found had a Lone Star Student ID card, and 25-year-old Jody Neal.

Neal, who is taking GED classes at the school, and a bystander, Bobby Cliburn, a maintenance worker at the college, were both shot about 12:20 p.m. outside the library at the campus, 700 W. W. Thorne.

Garcia said Neal was not being charged in the shooting at this time, and investigators are trying to determine what sparked the argument between the men.

"Why it ended up the way it did, it was just stupidity," he said. "No argument should result in someone pulling a firearm. No argument. And so, I don't care what it was about, it did not need to happen the way it did."

Cliburn, believed to be shot in the leg, and Neal, shot in the abdomen and leg, were both taken to hospitals and expected to recover.

Kept under guard

Berry also was wounded. Initial reports indicated he accidentally shot himself in the hip, although Garcia said that had not yet been confirmed.

He said authorities located Berry on campus and took him to a hospital, where he was being kept under guard until his transfer to the Harris County Jail.

A fourth person was also taken to a hospital during the incident.

A 23-year-old woman, who spoke to the Houston Chronicle and did not want to be identified, said she was in a classroom when another student came in and said a shooting was happening.

She said she was an Army veteran who was stationed at Fort Hood during the 2009 shooting rampage where 13 people were killed and more than two dozen injured.

Gunfire erupting outside her campus stirred up painful memories.

"It just made me very nervous and anxious and my blood pressure went up," she said. Paramedics took her to a hospital. She said doctors are trying to determine whether she suffered a stroke.

Scores of witnesses

At least eight investigators are working on the case and have interviewed more than 100 witnesses so far, Garcia said.

Steve Head, president of Lone Star College-North Harris, said students were jittery from the shooting when classes resumed Wednesday and that the school offered forums to help them as well as faculty understand the steps to take during a shooting situation on campus.

The school had submitted a state-required safety and security plan.

"Students are concerned but we are trying to emphasize to them that this is an isolated incident," Head said, adding that Tuesday's shooting was the first in the Lone Star College's 40-year-history.

Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact the Sheriff's Office Homicide Unit at 713-967-5810 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.