Eighteen-year-old Timothy George Simpkins was released from jail only one day after he allegedly opened fire in a classroom.
According to police, Simpkins is accused of shooting at least two people, one 15-year-old student and one 25-year-old teacher, at Timberview High School in Arlington.
Another two students are recovering from less severe, non-gun-related injuries.
The suspect from yesterday's school shooting in Arlington, Timothy Simpkins, posted bail and was released this afternoon from the Tarrant Co Jail https://t.co/NUk6q1QDpO pic.twitter.com/62x5zd0Xy8
— CBS Austin (@cbsaustin) October 7, 2021
One of the victims is currently in critical condition, while the other is in stable condition.
He was jailed with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, but posted his minuscule $75,000 bail less than 24 hours later.
“This is not a random act of violence,” Assistant Police Chief Kevin Kolbye said at a news conference. “This is not somebody attacking our school.”
According to family spokeswoman Carol Harrison Lafayette, Simpkins was bullied and robbed twice while at school, which may have prompted this action.
“The decision he made, taking the gun, we’re not justifying that,” said Lafayette. “That was not right. But he was trying to protect himself.”
However, Daily Mail reports that “[Simpkins] shot the other boy ‘seven to eight times’, according to one student who was interviewed by police, and also shot 25-year-old Calvin Pettitt, a teacher who had tried to break up the fight. Pettitt was shot in the back.”
Why Simpskins was only charged with assault and not attempted murder is still unclear.
