2 Houston-area student killings renew school safety debate | #schoolsaftey #kids #parents #children

Families and elected officials are calling for stronger gun violence prevention measures after two Houston-area high school students were killed in separate shootings near their campuses last week. 

Westfield High School student Royce Witchet, 15, was fatally shot last Tuesday afternoon near the Spring ISD campus. Three days later, Westbury High School senior LePaul Warren, Jr., 17, was shot and killed outside of his HISD campus early Friday, the day before his homecoming football game. Two teenagers have been arrested and charged in the separate incidents. 

Both shootings occurred just off campus, and both came after school districts have spent billions to bolster school security, including a state mandate for an armed officer at every public school in Texas. 

But some Houston-area officials say more could be done to keep students safe, and experts say early intervention is part of preparing for emergencies.

“We cannot accept this as normal,” U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee, a Houston Democrat, said after Warren’s death. “Our students deserve to learn at school and enjoy their friends free from fear. They deserve leaders who treat this crisis with urgency, in Congress, in Austin, and at every level of government.” 

STAFF CUTS: Which HISD schools are losing staff and programs due to enrollment decline? Here’s a list so far.

Texas school districts have seen sharp increases in school safety funding and requirements after high-profile mass shootings in Uvalde and Santa Fe.

That includes laws requiring Texas schools to have plans for emergencies, threat assessment teams and armed security officers at each campus.

Houston and Spring ISDs have also started using weapons detection systems at many of their campuses. HISD implemented the systems at all high schools by May 2025, while Spring has had the systems for several years.

In 2025, Spring ISD was the first school district to earn the region’s “Active Shooter Preparedness Certification” after completing several safety upgrades, including silent panic alarms in every classroom, an AI phone entry system for visitors, impact-resistant glass and an emergency alert app for staff members.

This year, HISD added new armed officers to some campuses and announced new safety policies at athletic events, including a clear backpack policy.

School districts now have higher safety expectations and they’ve largely stepped up to the challenge, said Kathy Martinez-Prather, the director of Texas State University’s Texas School Safety Center.

“It’s hard to prove what you prevent. But what we can say is that we know that schools are conducting threat assessments more,” Martinez-Prather said. “Does that mean that there are more threats and more concerning behaviors taking place? Or are we just better trained and more well aware of them?”

But some school districts have struggled to meet all safety mandates. 

By 2025, HISD and more than half of Texas districts had failed to meet the state law requiring all campuses to have an armed security officer. This year, 112 of HISD’s roughly 260 campuses — including every middle and high school — had an armed officer. 

At Westbury, an on-campus police officer rushed to the scene after Warren was shot Friday morning.

Prevention and early intervention are key parts to emergency preparedness, and schools can conduct a threat assessment before an actual threat occurs, Martinez-Prather said. 

“Not only looking at making sure that the physical part of your school is secure, but also making sure you’ve got systems in place where you are checking in with the social-emotional well-being of your students,” Martinez-Prather said. “That prevention piece is also critical to a holistic approach.”

But some districts may cut or scale back programs promoting students’ social and emotional well-being as districts face declining enrollment and receive less funding. In 2025, HISD cut all of its wraparound specialists designed to provide low-income families with free services, while Spring ISD has faced budget deficits for several years.

Both shootings occurred at popular student gathering spots off campus. While schools don’t need to have officers permanently stationed at student hotspots, they can coordinate with local law enforcement to regularly patrol those areas, said Shane Wallace, executive director of the Texas Association of School Resource Officers. 

“I would encourage school police and administrators to identify the predictable places students congregate immediately before and after school,” Wallace said. “During arrival and dismissal, officers could periodically check known gathering locations, coordinate with patrol officers within their agency and partner agencies who have overlapping jurisdiction responsible for the surrounding area, monitor developing conflicts, and communicate with businesses where students regularly gather.”

FACT-CHECK: Is Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles leaving?

Both school districts have committed to increasing their law enforcement and counseling staff after the students’ deaths. Westbury High, which was scheduled to have its homecoming game Saturday, has postponed all events, and a memorial has been constructed outside of the school to remember Warren. 

The teenager accused in the case, 17-year-old Travoris Hines, is jailed on a murder charge and could face life imprisonment, with parole, if convicted. 

A celebration of life for Witchet will be held at Fallbrook Church in north Houston Saturday. A 14-year-old who is believed to be a fellow student was charged with murder as a juvenile in connection to Witchet’s death.

Local elected officials, including Menefee and Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare, have called for “common-sense gun laws” and other protections in the wake of the shootings, while several parents called for more communication and transparency from their districts.

That communication should happen well before an emergency, Martinez-Prather said.

“A lot of times, what we hear from parents is they’re not aware of what’s going to happen should an emergency occur on campus … I think that oftentimes brings about the most anxiety with parents,” Martinez-Prather said. “When there’s that communication and expectations are set, parents find that to be more comforting when they know what’s going to happen in the event of an emergency.”

Wallace said there has not been a clear increase in violent school incidents across the state, but he said the recent shootings could spur more collaboration between school police departments.

“Multiple violent incidents at school districts within the same metropolitan region is not common,” Wallace said. “Given what has happened around Houston this week, this would be a reasonable time for area school police departments to increase intelligence sharing to try and identify trends (and) patterns in violent behavior that may be occurring at multiple districts.”