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Missed warning signs: Your eyes and ears can help prevent school shootings

Texas School shooting
Posted at 5:01 PM, May 25, 2022
and last updated 2022-05-25 21:53:31-04

BIRMINGHAM, Mich. (WXYZ) — We’ve been hearing this for years: If you see something, say something. Now more than ever, we’re learning about missed warning signs in school shootings including in Texas this week and in Oxford six months earlier.

Matt Gutman of ABC News said in his report on "Good Morning America" Wednesday, “So many in this community are wondering how all of these warning signs were missed.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the 18-year-old who did the shooting posted his intentions on Facebook right before the shooting. Police also said he posted pictures and videos of guns on social media as well as other warning signs with friends.

Dr. Gerald Shiener is a psychiatrist in metro Detroit who has worked on these kinds of cases for years.

“We find that they always let other people know. They not only give hints, they tell their friends,” Shiener said.

There were missed warning signs in the Oxford school shooting six months ago that have played out in court. Oxford High School counselor Shawn Hopkins testified he did not look into them the day of the shooting on Nov. 30.

What would you need to see or hear to make a report? That’s a personal decision, but authorities advise you to report issues and that it’s better to be safe than sorry.