Ahmir Jolliff dashed out of his home in Perry Thursday morning, eager to see his friends on the first day back to school after winter break.
Ahmir was killed Thursday before class even started, when a 17-year-old student at Perry High School opened fire in the cafeteria. The sixth-grader, who attended the middle school that’s connected to the high school, was shot three times, authorities said.
“I just had a feeling he was still in that building,” she said.
Jolliff said she was horrified to hear that friends of 17-year-old Dylan Butler, who police have identified as the shooter, say he was bullied for years and that teachers and school officials did nothing to protect him.
Two friends and their mother who spoke with the AP said Butler was a quiet person who had been bullied since elementary school. Investigators are still working to get a “good grasp of who Dylan was,” Mortvedt said. The investigation will include Butler’s background along with the “environment of the school,” he said.
Superintendent Clark Wicks wouldn’t discuss whether Butler had been bullied.
Ahmir Jolliff 'loved everyone,' mom says
Jolliff remembered her son as a font of happiness and sociability, who seemingly knew everyone in town and whose ample dimples were constantly lit up by a perpetual grin.
“He was so well-loved and he loved everyone,” she said. “He’s such an outgoing person.”
Ahmir was killed Thursday before class even started, when a 17-year-old student at Perry High School opened fire in the cafeteria. The sixth-grader, who attended the middle school that’s connected to the high school, was shot three times, authorities said.
Ahmir Jolliff's mother searched for him at scene following Iowa school shooting
Ahmir’s mother, Erica Jolliff, said on that morning, her son couldn’t wait to get to school and left minutes ahead of his mom and sister, who is in ninth-grade. Jolliff soon found herself scouring the streets for her children when authorities sped into town and blocked access to the complex after the shooting. She found her daughter unharmed. But she couldn’t find Ahmir.“I just had a feeling he was still in that building,” she said.
Jolliff said she was horrified to hear that friends of 17-year-old Dylan Butler, who police have identified as the shooter, say he was bullied for years and that teachers and school officials did nothing to protect him.
Two friends and their mother who spoke with the AP said Butler was a quiet person who had been bullied since elementary school. Investigators are still working to get a “good grasp of who Dylan was,” Mortvedt said. The investigation will include Butler’s background along with the “environment of the school,” he said.
Superintendent Clark Wicks wouldn’t discuss whether Butler had been bullied.
Ahmir Jolliff 'loved everyone,' mom says
Jolliff remembered her son as a font of happiness and sociability, who seemingly knew everyone in town and whose ample dimples were constantly lit up by a perpetual grin.
“He was so well-loved and he loved everyone,” she said. “He’s such an outgoing person.”
11-year-old killed in Perry school shooting remembered as a joyful boy who loved soccer and singing
Ahmir Jolliff was killed Thursday when a 17-year-old student at Perry High School opened fire in the cafeteria.
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