This is a developing story and will be updated.
Perry Traditional Academy on Pittsburgh's North Side will switch to synchronous remote learning Wednesday as district and city police continue to investigate Tuesday's shooting outside the school.
Pittsburgh Police say they hope to take into custody the person who fired shots outside Perry Traditional Academy on Tuesday morning before the end of the day. No one was injured, though the school building sustained some damage.
Department of Public Safety spokesperson Emily Bourne said several students were heading into the school when police responded to the 3900 block of Baytree St., the intersection leading to Perry, just after 8 a.m.
A preliminary investigation of security camera footage indicated that a young male was the target of the shots fired, which prompted an 11-round ShotSpotter alert. Shell casings were recovered, though neither the target nor anyone else was injured.
Bullet damage to the school included two broken windows and some damage to the building’s brickwork.
Bourne said police hope to take the suspect, who fled the scene, into custody shortly. She said the person appeared to be a young male, “potentially a juvenile,” though the relationship to the target is unclear.
There is no ongoing risk to students at the school, which initially went into lockdown. District spokesperson Ebony Pugh said the school was operated under “secure status”, which requires staff to lock all outside doors and no one is allowed in or out of the building, through the end of the school day Tuesday.
Students are to follow their regular class schedules online Wednesday. The decision to switch to remote learning came out of an abundance of caution, Pugh said, as well as to provide school administration time to assess the needs of students and staff.
