A teenage boy was shot and killed while walking near Theodore Roosevelt High School in Northwest Washington, D.C, Wednesday, police say.
The 17-year-old boy was walking on a sidewalk on Iowa Avenue NW when a green car pulled up and someone from inside the car opened fire shortly before 2:30 p.m., police said.
The victim was identified by a law enforcement source and family member as Jefferson Perez.
Witnesses and police said the boy fell down in the parking lot of the school, where medics gave him CPR before taking him to a hospital in critical condition. He died at the hospital a short time later, police said.
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Authorities said at a news conference there was a fight in the parking lot and they found a gun there, but they don't yet know if the gun was associated with the shooting.
"It appears that there was some sort of confrontation, and we don't know in this moment what led up to it, but we do know that we have a gun recovered on the scene," Assistant Chief Morgan Kane said.
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It’s unclear if there was an exchange of gunfire. Witnesses told News4 they heard as many as five shots. Police said Jefferson Perez was shot once.
Authorities also said the video they are reviewing did not capture the entire confrontation.
"What makes it difficult is that there is a bit of an obstruction, so we don’t have any information in this moment to indicate there was a shootout that occurred simultaneously," Kane said.
The victim was a student at Roosevelt High School and had attended school on Wednesday, police said. Investigators said they're looking into when he left the school.
Roosevelt High School, MacFarland Middle School and Dorothy I. Height Elementary School were on lockdown until dismissal. Powell Elementary School was on "alert status," D.C. Public Schools said.
Police said they don't believe students in the schools were ever in danger. Roosevelt High School will be open to students on Thursday and provide counseling resources. DCPS' mental health support team will also respond with counselors.
Mayor Muriel Bowser came to the scene and urged the D.C. Council to act immediately on her new proposals to address the increase in crime in the city.
“I hope that they deal with them urgently, and that means not waiting until the summer is over to have hearings and move legislation," she said.
Washington Teachers’ Union President Jacqueline Pogue Lyons said the shooting is an unspeakable tragedy and schools should be safe havens for students and their employees.
"This episode emphasizes the need for community schools, which provide much-needed wraparound services for students and their families, especially mental health services, counseling and mentoring. While the city is dealing with the proliferation of crime, DCPS must make sure that our kids get the academic, social and emotional help they need to thrive," Lyons said in a statement.
The 4300 to 4400 blocks of Iowa Avenue NW were closed in both directions as police investigated.
Stay with News4 for updates to this developing story.
