Principal Shot in Oklahoma High School Lobby

A shooting in an Oklahoma high school lobby on Tuesday left the principal wounded and a suspect in custody, authorities say. Kirk Moore, principal of Pauls Valley High School, was shot shortly after 2pm in the school's entrance area, according to the Garvin County Sheriff's Office. He was airlifted to OU Health in Oklahoma City, arriving around 3:30pm, KOCO reports. Officials said he was in stable condition. The sheriff's office said all students are safe and accounted for. Authorities say the suspect is a 20-year-old former student. Moore was shot after he saw that the man had a firearm and he moved to intervene, along with other staff members, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation says,

The OSBI says the suspect fired multiple rounds. Moore, the only person injured, was hit in the leg. "What I want to make clear with this is that if it wasn't for the principal and the school staff stepping in and doing what they could, they saved multiple lives," OSBI public information manager Hunter McKee tells the Oklahoman. "When you're talking about a subject with a firearm inside a school with multiple students there during class, it could have been a horrible scene. But with the principal being a hero and the other staff stepping in and subduing this subject literally saved lives."

• Moore, 60, is expected to make a full recovery. "I know the word gets thrown around a lot, but he is a hero today," Superintendent Dr. Brett Knight said at a Tuesday news conference. "I'm thankful that we were prepared for an incident like this to happen, but you certainly never hope that it happens to you or your school."

• Moore has led Pauls Valley High since 2021 and previously worked there as assistant principal and in the athletics department. Pauls Valley is a community of 6,000 people around an hour south of Oklahoma City.
• "Cindy and I are praying for the students, families, teachers, and first responders in Pauls Valley as this situation continues to unfold," US Sen. James Lankford said in a statement. "We're grateful for the quick response from law enforcement and for reports that no students were harmed. Please join us in lifting up the injured employee for a full recovery and asking for protection for everyone on the scene."
• This story has been updated with new developments.