Suspect shot inside Oregon middle school, students safe

EUGENE, Ore. — A suspect was shot Friday after an attack that occurred inside an Oregon middle school but did not injure any students or teachers, police said.

Students were locked in classrooms and no one was being allowed into the building during the lockdown, Eugene police Lt. Jennifer Bills told reporters at Cascade Middle School in Eugene.

"No students were harmed whatsoever. All the students are safe," she said.

Bills said the incident began with a dispute outside the school. It wasn't clear who was involved and no further details were released on the attacker.

Police asked parents to stay away from the school during the investigation.

Bethel School District said in a statement posted on its website that students would be released at 3 p.m. local time through the school's side exits and should be picked up at nearby St. Mark's Catholic Church.

More than 20 years ago, then 15-year-old Kip Kinkel killed his parents before fatally shooting two students and wounding 26 others at Thurston High School in nearby Springfield.

The incident was among the first school attacks in recent decades to seize the national spotlight, and predated prominent incidents around the country that have spurred a broader focus on school violence. Kinkel remains in prison.