At least 2 handguns used in school shooting near Columbine

HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. (AP) — Two high school students used at least two handguns in the shooting at a charter school that killed one of their classmates and injured eight others in a Colorado community that just weeks ago marked the 20th anniversary of one of the nation’s worst school shootings, authorities said Wednesday.

That Tuesday afternoon’s attack at STEM School Highlands Ranch happened just miles from Columbine High School was sure to raise questions about whether it was inspired by the 1999 massacre, but the answer was not immediately clear.

Douglas County sheriff’s officials said Devon Erickson, 18, and a younger student who is a juvenile and was not identified walked into the STEM School Highlands Ranch through an entrance without metal detectors and opened fire on students in two classrooms.

Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock told reporters that the suspects had a “number of weapons.” Those weapons included two handguns which that Spurlock said the suspects were not old enough to buy or own.

Authorities on Tuesday identified the juvenile suspect as a boy but Spurlock on Wednesday told reporters that the juvenile suspect is a girl.