17-year-old arrested in stabbing at Howard Co. high school

Yellow crime tape blocks off an area near a mall parking area where two Baltimore city police officers were shot and a suspect was killed as a U.S. Marshals’ task force served a warrant, Tuesday, July 13, 2021, in Baltimore, Md. The police officers were taken to the University of Maryland Medical Center with injuries that aren’t thought to be life-threatening, county police spokeswoman Joy Stewart said.( (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)(AP/Jose Luis Magana)

A student at a Howard County, Maryland, high school has been hospitalized after a stabbing in the school parking lot Thursday morning, and police said they’ve made an arrest.

The altercation happened between two students outside Columbia’s Long Reach High School around 11 a.m. Thursday, police said. An 18-year-old man was injured in the stabbing and transported to Shock Trauma by ambulance. Police said he is in serious, but stable condition.



Howard County schools superintendent Michael Martirano said the school was immediately placed on lockdown to keep students and staff safe.

“This terrible event is extremely concerning, and I know that parents, guardians and families were extremely troubled as they received updates from the school and messages from their children,” Martirano wrote in a letter to the school community.

On Thursday evening, police arrested a 17-year-old boy who fled the scene in a car. Charges are pending.

The school resource officer who was on the scene helped the injured student within a minute of the altercation.

“I commend the school resource officer and Long Reach staff who quickly reacted to tend to the injured student and ensure the safety of all students and staff,” Martirano added. “Police also maintained an increased presence during dismissal.”

As of Thursday afternoon, the school has moved into a modified lockdown.

Valerie Bonk

Valerie Bonk started working at WTOP in 2016 and has lived in Howard County, Maryland, her entire life. She's thrilled to be a reporter for WTOP telling stories on air. She works as both a television and radio reporter in the Maryland and D.C. areas. 

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