Police fatally shoot gunman who opened fire at carpool line outside Georgia elementary school

VALDOSTA, Ga. — A Valdosta police officer shot and killed a man Thursday after the suspect opened fire on cars waiting to pick up children outside S.L. Mason Elementary School, according to a Friday statement from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Investigators identified the shooter as 25-year-old Tychicus Armondo Deshazer, a Valdosta resident. The officer heard gunshots, then saw the man enter the campus, the GBI said. Officers confronted him and opened fire; Deshazer died later at a hospital. No other injuries were reported.

School officials immediately implemented lockdown procedures and evacuated or redirected students. Buses that would normally take students home were rerouted back inside the campus, and students waiting to be picked up were kept inside until authorities announced the all-clear. The district, which serves about 8,000 students, had a previously scheduled remote learning day on Friday.

District Superintendent Craig Lockhart said counselors and support staff would be available at S.L. Mason on Monday and that the system would help refer families to outside counseling as needed.

Lisa Figueroa, a grandmother who had just picked up her granddaughter, told WALB-TV that the response helped prevent a worse outcome and praised police and school officials for acting quickly.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is leading the inquiry. Once it has completed its investigation, it will present its findings to the Lowndes County district attorney, who will decide whether criminal charges are merited.

Valdosta is just north of the Florida state line, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) south of Atlanta. S.L. Mason Elementary School had an enrollment of about 900 students in prekindergarten through fifth grade last school year.