More on the Wilmer-Hutchins High School Shooting

Wilmer-Hutchins High School in Dallas, Texas, welcomed students back Wednesday morning, but the wounds from last week’s shooting are far from healed. A .40 caliber handgun with an extended magazine echoed through the hallways on April 15, carried by 17-year-old Tracy Haynes Jr., who prosecutors say was not just acting on impulse, but following a plan.

Surveillance footage captured Haynes walking through a side door opened by another student. Moments later, he began firing. One of his victims was shot at point-blank range after being unable to run. The only reason that student survived was because the weapon jammed.

Court records show this wasn’t Haynes’ first brush with violence. At Roosevelt High, he was sentenced to six months of probation after assaulting another student. Police reports also allege that he once pulled a gun on family members and was eventually kicked out of his father’s house. After that, he moved in with his aunt and transferred to Wilmer-Hutchins, where he reportedly told relatives that gang members had been threatening him.

His defense claims one of the students shot was affiliated with that gang. But that still leaves an unanswered question, who were the other three victims? Were they also threats, or just in the wrong place at the wrong time?

What played out in that hallway doesn’t look like a targeted act of self-defense. It looks like chaos unleashed by a teenager who had both access to a deadly weapon and a long history of unresolved anger. Indiscriminate violence, whether triggered by fear or fury, leaves the same devastation.

Haynes eventually turned himself in later that evening. He now faces six counts of aggravated assault in a mass shooting. A judge denied a request to reduce his $3.1 million bond, although one of the charges carrying a $600,000 bond is reportedly being recalled, which may bring the total down to about $2.5 million. Either way, the court wasn’t swayed by claims that he wasn’t a danger to the public or a flight risk, especially after spending hours on the run.

While Haynes sits in the jail, his classmates are expected to return to their routines as if nothing happened. Many didn’t. Dozens walked out just before 11:30 a.m on Wednesday., holding signs and demanding action. For some, it was the second time in just over a year they’ve had to protest a shooting at their school.

Texas lawmakers continue to offer condolences and recycled soundbites. Meanwhile, students are staging walkouts just to feel heard. If any state needs real gun reform, it’s the one where school shootings are starting to feel routine. Texas can no longer afford to wait for the next one.

(Sources)

UPDATE 5/20/2025: Earlier this month, it was reported that one of the teachers at Wilmer-Hutchins High School was not only grazed by a bullet on her face, but the bullet went through her glasses.

I’m including this to show how much worse the shooting could have been if some students or staff were just inches away from where they were.