A fight between students led to a stabbing at Hartford Public High School Tuesday morning and a teen is now facing charges, according to police.
It happened around 11:15 a.m. at the school on Forest Street.
Police said the fight began as a verbal confrontation between the two students in the school's locker room. It then continued outside the school and into the street in front of the school, police said.
It was then that one student pulled out a knife and stabbed the other student twice, police said.
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The victim, an 18-year-old senior, was taken to the hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. School officials said they're out of surgery and in stable condition.
The suspect is a 17-year-old sophomore at the school, according to police. He was seen getting into a nearby vehicle outside of the school after the stabbing.
School officials said there were other people in the car and the student was not the driver. Someone is the community alerted police to the teen's attempt to flee.
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School resource officers were able to stop the car from getting away.
The student faces charges including first-degree assault and carrying a dangerous weapon on school grounds.
The school's surveillance cameras captured the incident and investigators are reviewing that video, police said.
The school was locked down during the incident but returned to normal later in the day.
Hartford Public Schools deployed extra school security officers to the school and will maintain an increased presence, according to a school spokesperson.
Superintendent Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez said officials want to unpack the incident with students. It's still not clear what exactly led up to the incident.
The district will also provide support to students, staff and families including on-site counseling. This includes added crisis, wellness and mental health services.
At this point, police officers have not been able to find the knife used during the assault. It's unclear if the 17-year-old had the knife while they were in school, Torres-Rodriguez said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 860-722-8477. Hartford Police Major Crimes and Crime Scene Divisions assisted in the investigation, which remains active and ongoing.
