Two arrested in shooting of girl, 15, at North Carolina school

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Two North Carolina high school students have been arrested in connection with the shooting of classmate Caitlyn Ambercrombie.

An 18-year-old suspect, Ta’von McLaurin, is scheduled to appear in court today. A 15-year-old suspect is to appear later in juvenile court.

Police have recovered a .22-caliber Daisy rifle and shell casings in connection with the case, Cumberland County Sheriff Earl ‘Moose’ Butler announced Monday at a news conference in Fayetteville, N.C. A school surveillance camera showed the male suspects carrying the gun inside the school, Butler told reporters.

Ambercrombie, 15, who was shot in the neck as she walked past a cafeteria breezeway Monday, was in stable condition after surgery, according to Butler. A police officer assigned to the school was near the girl when she was shot at midday Monday and called for assistance.

The suspects were either in a hallway with the door open or just outside the breezeway when the shot was fired, Butler said. He said investigators do not believe Ambercrombie was the intended target, but no motive has been established.

Butler said he didn’t know how the suspects got the gun into the school, which has metal detectors.

The school was on lockdown for several hours after the shooting. Local TV footage showed students being escorted from the campus with their arms raised over their heads after being searched by police.

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-- David Zucchino in Durham, N.C.