Update (October 21, 2019): Oregon high school football coach, Keanon Lowe, disarmed 19-year-old Angel Granados-Diaz in May when the student brought a gun to school.
More than five months later, surveillance video of the incident at Parkrose High School has surfaced on the internet, allowing the public to get a closer look at Lowe's heroics.
The video shows Lowe walking out of a building with the gun in one hand while holding the student with the other. The coach then throws the gun to another person and hugs Granados-Diaz while waiting for police to arrive.
KOIN 6 news obtained the video from the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office through a public records request.
The Parkrose School District, however, wasn't happy with the release of the video.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the district said KOIN's request was denied because releasing the video is a violation of students rights through the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
"The release of the video has a significant impact on the students, staff and families of Parkrose High School. This was a traumatic event for out students, staff and community," the district said. "We are very disappointed that KOIN news chose to release the video without our permission and consideration of the impact of releasing the footage."
Message from Superintendent Michael Lopes Serrao pic.twitter.com/CksIq8fmY4
— Parkrose (@parkrose) October 19, 2019
In an interview with KOIN, Lowe described the incident involving Granados-Diaz.
Lowe, who also works as a security guard at the school, said he was called to the fine arts building to get a student.
“I walk in there, I get to the classroom, I’m in the classroom for 15, 20 seconds — you know, I ask the teacher, ‘Is the student here?'” Lowe told KOIN. "The door opens — I’m within arm’s length of the door, about three feet away from the door, and there’s a kid with a gun, a shotgun.”
That's when Lowe wrestled the gun away from Granados-Diaz and walked him out of the classroom while students nearby took off.
“I felt compassion for him," Lowe told KOIN. "A lot of times, especially when you’re young, you don’t realize what you’re doing until it’s over.”
According to KOIN, Granados-Diaz pleaded guilty to gun charges and avoided time behind bars, but received a 36-month probation sentence.
Prosecutors said Granados-Diaz brought the gun to only harm himself, USA Today reported.
Original (May 19, 2019): An Oregon high school is thankful to have a football coach willing to risk it all for his students.
Former Unversity of Oregon wide receiver Keanon Lowe tackled an armed man stopping a possible mass shooting on Friday.
Lowe, who was an assistant with the San Francisco 49ers, now serves as head football coach, track coach and security guard at Parkrose High School in Portland. According to CNN, the former standout athlete saw a male student armed with a shotgun Friday.
The unnamed student attempted to enter a classroom around noon but was stopped short when Lowe confronted him. Other security personnel was contacted and they all managed to disarm the teen.
Authorities said when they arrived at the scene, the would-be gunman was subdued and detained in the hallway. Police have yet to release the name of the armed student.
The heroic educator walked out of school about four hours after the incident. According to The Oregonian, the student showed signs of carrying out an attack.
Peers reportedly told school officials the gunman was an 18-year-old senior at Parkrose. Parkrose School District Superintendent Michael Lopes Serrao sent a letter home to families stating two students informed a staff member of the senior's “concerning behavior” before the possible shooting.
The alleged gunman appeared in a government class about 10 minutes before students were supposed to be dismissed. He reportedly wore a black trench coat concealing a shotgun, senior Justyn Wilcox recalled in an interview with The Oregonian.
Students said the armed suspect didn’t point the gun at anyone. They all ran out of the classroom's backdoor moments before Lowe subdued the gunman.
In a statement regarding the incident, Lopes Serrao said the student will no longer attend the school. All students are expected to return to campus on Monday with an "enhanced security presence" in wake of the would-be attack.
