Latest: Shooting victim dies after removal of life support

Latest: Shooting victim dies after removal of life support


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GREAT MILLS, Md. (AP) — The Latest on a shooting at a southern Maryland school (all times local):

10 a.m.

A 16-year-old girl shot earlier this week at her Maryland high school has died.

The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office said Friday that Jaelynn Willey died at 11:34 p.m. Thursday.

Earlier Thursday night, Willey's family said Jaelynn would be taken off life support at University of Maryland Prince George's Hospital Center.

Jaelynn was shot in the head Tuesday morning at Great Mills High School by 17-year-old Austin Rollins. Police say the two had been in a relationship that recently ended.

A 14-year-old student, Desmond Barnes, was also injured.

Rollins was killed in the attack. It remains unclear whether he committed suicide or was shot by a school resource officer who responded to the attack.

The sheriff's office said Jaelynn was surrounded by her family when she died.

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8:45 a.m.

There's no immediate word this morning from the family of the victim of a shooting inside a Maryland high school.

The mother of a teenage girl shot when a classmate opened fire said Thursday night that she was brain dead and would be removed from life support.

Melissa Willey told news reporters that her daughter, 16-year-old Jaelynn Willey, had "no life left in her."

Jaelynn was shot Tuesday by 17-year-old Austin Rollins at Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County.

It's not yet clear whether Rollins was then killed by a responding school resource officer or took his own life. Both fired another round.

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8:25 p.m.

The mother of a teenage girl shot when a classmate opened fire inside their Maryland high school says she is brain dead and is being removed from life support.

Melissa Willey told news reporters Thursday night that her daughter, 16-year-old Jaelynn Willey, has "no life left in her." She said Jaelynn would be removed from life support during the evening.

The teen was shot Tuesday by 17-year-old Austin Rollins at Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County.

Rollins died after shooting Willey. A school resource officer got there within a minute and fired a shot at Rollins, but it's not yet clear whether Rollins was killed by the officer's bullet or took his own life.

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5:30 p.m.

The Facebook profile page of a Maryland school shooting victim was mistakenly changed to indicate she had died.

Jaelynn Willey's Facebook page was changed Wednesday to say "remembering Jaelynn Willey" with a message: "We hope people who love Jaelynn will find comfort in visiting her profile to remember and celebrate her life."

Jaelynn, though, was still alive and in critical condition Thursday at a Maryland hospital after Tuesday's shooting at Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County.

The page was changed again Thursday to remove the language suggesting Jaelynn had died. The family had been trying to get the page changed since Wednesday afternoon, said Lucinda Avis, a family friend who set up a fundraising page for Jaelynn.

Facebook would not respond on the record to questions from The Associated Press about what happened.

A post describing the company's policies says Facebook will "memorialize" an account if a family member or friend submits a request. A form asks only for a name and date of death. The "proof of death" field is described as optional.

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5:30 p.m.

A former coach at the Maryland school where a shooting happened earlier this week is rallying support to help get students to the March for Our Lives on Saturday.

On Tuesday at Great Mills High School, a 17-year-old shot a girl he'd been in a relationship with before exchanging gunfire with a sheriff's deputy. The shooter was killed and another student was critically injured.

Aaron Foreman posted a video Wednesday on Facebook calling for donations so that students could attend the Washington march.

The march is in support of stronger gun control measures.

Foreman says in an interview that churches have donated vans, stores have given food and gift cards and others offered to buy Metro cards.

His daughter graduated from Great Mills last year. He says: "This could've been her."

According to Foreman, about 60 students so far are planning to attend.

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11:11 p.m.

Tuesday's school shooting in southern Maryland that left the shooter dead and two students wounded increasingly appears to be the action of a teenager who was upset over a relationship that ended.

Authorities on Wednesday released a few additional details into the shooting at Great Mills High School in St. Mary's County.

Seventeen-year-old Austin Rollins was killed after shooting a schoolmate, 16-year-old Jaelynn Willey. A school resource officer arrived within a minute and fired a shot at Rollins, but it's not yet clear whether Rollins was killed by the officer's bullet or took his own life.

A 14-year-old boy who was shot in the thigh during the encounter was released from a hospital Wednesday.

The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday that Rollins and the girl had been in a relationship that recently ended.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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