Students in Bend, Oregon, will not return to classes as the community continues to mourn three children and a teacher killed in the latest school shooting in the United States, an incident that has left investigators searching for a motive.
Authorities are examining what led 16-year-old Griffin J. John II, a former student at Silver Rail Elementary School, to return to the campus and open fire inside a special needs classroom. Teacher Megan Lambert was killed alongside 5-year-old Rhoam Summer and two other children aged 8 and 11, according to police. The families of the two older children requested that their names not be made public.
“We hold each of them and their families and their loved ones close in our hearts as we mourn together as one community,” Bend-La Pine Superintendent Steve Cook said in a video statement released Sunday. “Our responsibilities to care for one another will continue well beyond these first days.
The shooting came to an end when another teacher intervened by throwing a cellphone and tackling the suspect, allowing a good Samaritan to fatally shoot the gunman, police said. The attack marked the 36th shooting on a K-12 school ground in the United States this year, according to data compiled by multiple databases, including the Gun Violence Archive.
Investigators on Thursday interviewed the shooter’s parents, who were cooperative, and executed a search warrant at the family home, recovering computers and other electronics. Local authorities and the FBI are working to extract data from the devices to determine whether a digital trail preceded the attack. Officials confirmed the gunman used a Maverick 88 pump-action 12-gauge shotgun and carried about 44 remaining rounds of ammunition. A senior law enforcement official stated the firearm was purchased by the shooter’s mother.
Oregon law prohibits minors under 18 from legally purchasing a shotgun, though they may legally possess one if a parent, guardian, or authorized person transfers it to them for hunting, target practice, or shooting sports. The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians confirmed Sunday that the gunman was an enrolled member of the tribe.
“The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians is heartbroken by the tragic loss of life at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend,” CEO Kurtis Barker said in a statement. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones and hold in our thoughts those who were injured, the students and staff who experienced this unimaginable tragedy, and the entire Bend community as they grieve.”
Kelik Summer shared his grief on social media following the death of his 5-year-old son, Rhoam. “Today has been the worst day of my life,” he wrote. “We are broken and lost, but are surrounded by friends and family who are keeping us safe.”
Megan Lambert, a 25-year-old special education teacher, was remembered by her family as a passionate educator whose role at Silver Rail was her “dream job.” A native of central Oregon, Lambert graduated from Mountain View High School in 2019 and earned a degree from Boise State University in 2023. “Megan was compassionate and had a huge heart,” her family said in a statement. “She always fought for the underdog and those with special needs.”
Two others were injured in the shooting: 54-year-old inclusion educational assistant Becky Drury and 7-year-old Saylor Graham. Drury sustained serious injuries to her left arm and right hand requiring multiple surgeries. Her husband, Will Drury, expressed gratitude for the community’s support, stating that their immediate focus is on her recovery. Saylor received emergency medical care at the scene and was transported to Oregon Health & Science University, where she was listed in serious but stable condition.
The sequence of events began just before 1 p.m. when a driver in a red Toyota pickup truck spotted the gunman jumping over a fence and confronted him. The suspect fired at the truck at least three times before the driver drove down the street and placed a 911 call. Within approximately three minutes, the gunman forced his way through double doors by shooting out the glass panes, entering the building, and moving directly to the special needs classroom to the left of the entrance, where he fired up to 15 rounds.
Kaylub Giamanco, a 36-year-old contractor and father of two students at the school, was on his lunch break when he witnessed the initial confrontation. Armed with a legally secured 40-caliber pistol, Giamanco drove into the parking lot, followed the suspect into the building through a shattered window, and heard gunfire. Upon seeing a teacher struggling with the gunman, Giamanco fired multiple rounds, killing the suspect, according to police. Giamanco immediately called his mother to report the incident. Both of his children survived the shooting.
President Donald Trump praised Giamanco as “a great hero,” and Lambert’s family expressed deep gratitude for his intervention.
Questions remain regarding how the shooter bypassed security infrastructure at Silver Rail Elementary. Superintendent Cook noted that the district had previously installed secure entry vestibules, photo ID checks, visitor screenings, indoor and outdoor security cameras, and upgraded interior classroom locks in 2022. The school had also completed a lockdown drill roughly two weeks prior to the shooting, attended by four school resource officers. However, the assigned school resource officer was stationed at another campus when the attack occurred, as the officer oversees six or seven schools in the district, according to police spokesperson Sheila Miller.
