Mother: Girl, boyfriend fought before Tenn. school shooting

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press


April 18, 2021
Updated: April 18, 2021 3:46 p.m.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee woman said she called police about a physical fight involving her daughter and the girl's boyfriend before he was fatally shot by officers in a high school bathroom.

Regina Perkins said she called police last Monday on 17-year-old as Anthony J. Thompson Jr., the Knoxville News Sentinel reported.

Police said Thompson had a gun inside Austin-East Magnet High School in east Knoxville later Monday and was shot to death in a confrontation with officers in a bathroom.

Perkins said Thompson and her daughter, a junior, had dated for nine months. The girl called Perkins from an assistant principal’s office earlier Monday, saying she was upset and wanted to leave school early. Perkins said she allowed her to sign out and go home, where the girl indicated she and Thompson got into a scuffle during an argument.

Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/article/Mother-Girl-boyfriend-fought-before-Tenn-16110257.php

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

1. Probably lucky she's not dead

Smh

[Jilly_in_VA]

3. The girl told her mother

that the boy had nowhere to hide a gun as he was wearing skinny jeans. Read the link I posted below. As to the "scuffle" it sounds like she got a couple of licks in too. While I don't condone violence of any kind in relationships, being a domestic violence survivor, I am wondering if the boy was suicidal. Nobody holes up in a bathroom because they're going to shoot a bunch of people.

[Watchfoxheadexplodes]

4. Several reports say

"the shot did not come from the victims gun"

If he had a gun and went to the school after he just had a physical altercation with his girlfriend.

I stand by she's lucky.

[LisaL]

6. Per the article, she had some of the hair pulled out and had marks on her face.

Nowhere do I see that he had any injuries from the fight.

[Jilly_in_VA]

7. How could you tell?

I remind you he was SHOT by police. You don't know where or how many times. Neither do I.

[LisaL]

8. All I said is that the article didn't say he had any injuries from the fight, but the girl clearly

had injuries, prompting her mother to call police.

[Jilly_in_VA]

9. The Knoxville paper

said that they "had gotten in a scuffle" which to me, as the mother of former teenagers and the grandmother of more than a few, indicates that the girl may have gotten a few licks in herself. I base this on my 16 year old granddaughter, who would most certainly fight back in any situation. The young lady in question is not a petite little thing. Yes, she had injuries. You don't know what she doled out in return. (Which is to say, I hope she did!) And the article is not going to say anything about him, because it's about her.

[SheltieLover]

5. Yup

[Jilly_in_VA]

2. According to

an article in the local paper, the officer who took the report from the mother (and then apparently went almost directly to the school) was one of the four officers involved in the shooting of the boy. I'll post a link but I'm not sure DU subscribers will be able to access it due to paywall.

https://www.knoxnews.com/story/news/2021/04/18/mother-of-anthony-thompson-jr-girlfriend-asks-why-police-fatally-shot-him/7239245002/

Officer Jonathan Clabough arrived at her home around 2 p.m., and took a report.

Meanwhile, Thompson had been texting Perkins, saying he was upset and frustrated that she did not want the couple to be together. Perkins said she texted a reply to Thompson, telling him that an officer would be coming to Austin-East.

"Anthony was aware that I had called the police and made a report," she said.

“When Officer Clabough left my house at about 2:36 p.m. he said he would be going to Austin East to make an arrest," Perkins said, "but he was given no impression that Anthony had a gun on him, so I don't know what happened after he left my house."