Was the fight consensual?

Rewrite of the rambling community letter:


​Incident Summary: James Hubert Blake High School
​Date: April 29, 2026
​Incident: Physical altercation in the parking lot during lunch escalated into a shooting.
​Casualties: One student injured; currently in stable condition.
​Suspect: Young adult, non-MCPS student; disarmed and apprehended by school security and the Community Engagement Officer (CEO).
​Police Action: MCPD arrested the suspect on-site; interior building investigation concluded at 1:30 p.m.
​School Status: Immediate HOLD until dismissal to ensure campus safety.
​Schedule and Support: April 30, 2026
​Delayed Opening: Students report at 10:45 a.m. (three-hour delay).
​Advisory: First period serves as an extended advisory for mental health and support resources.
​Community Meeting: 7:00 p.m. in the school auditorium.
​Revised Safety Protocols (Effective April 30)
​Lunch: Outdoor lunch is suspended for the remainder of the school year.
​Food Deliveries: Outside food deliveries (e.g., DoorDash, Uber Eats) are prohibited; drivers will be turned away.
​Supervision: Implementation of increased staff visibility and school-wide supervisory responsibilities.

Anonymous wrote:It is sad how we are getting used to school shooting incidents in MCPS. It doesn’t seem like a big deal anymore. This is becoming normalised which is a scary place to be

It said the decades ago when they were shootings at other schools, we didn’t want to do anything and now boo-hoo. It’s in our front yard and our backyard and our side yard.

You gotta care before it’s in your house

Anonymous wrote:They allowed Door Dash and deliveries? I thought mcps didn’t allow those or is that school dependent?

Allowing strangers onto campus is idiotic.

They allowed Door Dash and deliveries? I thought mcps didn’t allow those or is that school dependent?

April 29, 2026

Dear Blake Families, 

Today’s message is one we hoped we would never have to share with our community. Our goal every day is to ensure that every student learns in an environment that is safe, positive, and has a sense of belonging. As confirmed by our police partners, a physical altercation in our parking lot seemingly escalated into a gun incident that occurred during lunch and resulted in one of our students being injured. The alleged suspect is a young adult, non-MCPS student.

During this incident, the Community Engagement Officer (CEO) and our school security staff engaged the suspect, disarming and apprehending them. The suspect was immediately arrested by the Montgomery County Department of Police (MCPD), who were on site.  Based on our knowledge of a suspect being arrested and to support the movement of students on the exterior and interior of the building into a safe location, we immediately moved into a HOLD.  Additional Montgomery County Police arrived within minutes and conducted a thorough investigation of the school to ensure the campus was safe prior to dismissal. Their investigation of the interior of the building concluded at 1:30 p.m. and we elected to remain in a HOLD to support an effective dismissal process. 

Several Blake students were involved in this altercation. This behavior not only violates the MCPS Student Code of Conduct but it also stands in direct opposition to our core values, which prioritize the safety and well-being of each student and staff member. We want to acknowledge the feelings of fear and anxiety that each of you experienced as you received news of a shooting on our campus. Our hearts are with every student, staff member, and family as we navigate this horrible situation and the restoration of safety in the days and weeks to come. 

We want to express our deep gratitude and respect to our school security who intervened immediately and went above and beyond to ensure the safety of students. The immediate responsiveness of our CEO and collaboration with MCPD exemplified outstanding teamwork during an extremely unfortunate situation. We want to thank our students who were responsive to our safety protocols by immediately moving into a HOLD, and our staff who supported and encouraged them as they remained in a HOLD for an extended period. 

Our thoughts remain with the injured student and their family, and with all members of the Blake community who are processing today’s events. We can share that he is in stable condition. 

To ensure our staff have access to counseling resources and are prepared to support students, we will be having a three-hour delayed opening for students. This means that students will report to school by 10:45 a.m. and will go directly to their first-period class. The first period will serve as an extended advisory to ensure that students have time to access mental health or support resources. These resources will remain at the school throughout the day and will be available for as long as is necessary. Please encourage your child to access these additional resources or reach out on their behalf, and we will make sure that their school counselor checks in with them.  

Today’s events require us to carefully review our processes and make modifications to strengthen campus safety. Therefore, beginning tomorrow, April 30, the following safety measures will be implemented;

We will no longer be permitting students to eat lunch outside of the building for the remainder of the school year. This will support enhanced student supervision and ensure that no unauthorized visitors have the opportunity to access our students. 

No outside food deliveries will be permitted. Moving forward if a student elects to order food via DoorDash or Uber Eats, the driver will be turned away.  

There will be increased visibility through a school-wide supervisory process in which all staff will have responsibilities for enhancing school operations and strengthening safety measures. 

We want to ask for your help in communicating these upgrades to your children and encouraging them to honor them in the interest of school community safety. The key to how we respond to this situation is by working together as one team. Each of us plays a role in the safety of our community and when we work as a collective team, our students thrive in a safe learning environment. 

We want to invite you to a community meeting tomorrow, April 30 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium to discuss the incident, our response, and to answer any questions that you may have. 

 

Thomas W. Taylor Ed.D. M.B.A

Superintendent of Schools

Ahmed Adelekan
Principal, James Hubert Blake High School

 

Anonymous wrote:My son is a student at Blake. He said the shooter and the student who got shot are all current students at Blake.

MCPD say the shooter is a 19-year-old not affiliated with the school. Your son might be wrong. Or maybe the 19-year-old graduated from Blake but isn't a current student?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Taylor and Marcus: Your safety and security "strategy" continues to fail.

BOE: How long will you continue to allow students and staff to be put in harm's way?

I support SROs, but what can the BOE or the supe do about a non MCPS student coming onto the parking lot with a gun?

First off, I don't think a switch to the old SRO model (which is almost the same as the current CEO model) matters and would have made a difference here. The CEO responded and was on scene almost immediately.

As for your question on what the BOE and super can do, if you're asking this question, you're not equipped to engage in the debate.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How much is Marcus Jones making?

What does this have to do with anything? Is Marcus Jones, the father of the shooter?

What is Marcus Jones’s role?

What exactly is he paid so much to do?

These criminals are illegally buying their guns from other criminals. They do not care about laws they do not care about gun free school zones, they do not care about Maryland’s background check or seven day waiting period. What exactly do you expect Marcus Jones to do? The shooting was outside of the school in the parking lot so even common sense measures like magnetometers would not have worked.

If you want blame somebody blame the politicians who have been soft on crime. Blame the judges who give lenient to nonexistent sentencing for violent crimes. Blame the parents who don’t parent their children.

This. Marcus Jones is not to blame for this.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How much is Marcus Jones making?

What does this have to do with anything? Is Marcus Jones, the father of the shooter?

What is Marcus Jones’s role?

Retired Chief of Police (with pension), now Chief of Security at MCPS

Obviously needs to be fired for not securing schools.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcus-jones-ab52531a

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Police could patrol school grounds to keep the outside world away.

That would be a MCPD issue, not MCPS.

It's a partnerships like the synagogues have.

@DMVlife has now posted a video of the shooting. Not sure how to post here, but it shows the fight and shooting in the school parking lot.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Taylor and Marcus: Your safety and security "strategy" continues to fail.

BOE: How long will you continue to allow students and staff to be put in harm's way?

While I understand that the parking lot is technically school property, what do you believe reasonably can and should be done to prevent kids who shouldn't even be outside during school hours from engaging in violence outside? I cannot think of an actual appropriate solution for a situation like what occurred today unless you think guard towers and outdoor roving patrols are reasonable solutions.

If this was BCC the parents would be hunting for the principals head. Student skips school and gets arrested for reckless driving off school property-principal should be fired. Students leave school property and get in a fight five blocks away-principal should be fired.

💯 schools are responsible to know where their students are. Full stop.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Taylor and Marcus: Your safety and security "strategy" continues to fail.

BOE: How long will you continue to allow students and staff to be put in harm's way?

While I understand that the parking lot is technically school property, what do you believe reasonably can and should be done to prevent kids who shouldn't even be outside during school hours from engaging in violence outside? I cannot think of an actual appropriate solution for a situation like what occurred today unless you think guard towers and outdoor roving patrols are reasonable solutions.

If this was BCC the parents would be hunting for the principals head. Student skips school and gets arrested for reckless driving off school property-principal should be fired. Students leave school property and get in a fight five blocks away-principal should be fired.

It is sad how we are getting used to school shooting incidents in MCPS. It doesn’t seem like a big deal anymore. This is becoming normalised which is a scary place to be