Evergreen High School victim was shot at close range after confronting attacker, family says

Katie Langford, The Denver Post on Sep 25, 2025

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DENVER — A 14-year-old boy shot and critically injured by a classmate at Evergreen High School confronted the shooter during the attack before any alarms or lockdown procedures had started, his family said in a statement released by the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday.

The boy, whose name has not been made public, is one of the two students shot by a 16-year-old classmate who attacked the school on Sept. 10 before turning his gun on himself.

The second victim, 18-year-old Matthew Silverstone, also confronted the shooter and wrestled with him outside of the school before the teen shot him, his family said last week.

Both victims remain hospitalized and are making small improvements, according to their families and statements from the sheriff’s office.

In their statement, the 14-year-old’s family said the boy was shot at close range after confronting the shooter, but managed to run from the school while alerting classmates that there was someone with a gun.

He made it to the nearby recreation center, where an EMT on staff began providing first aid, according to his family.

The boy has been able to communicate through writing after an initial round of surgeries and immediately asked about his family, friends, classmates, teachers and Silverstone.

“He also asked how this could happen,” the boy’s family wrote in their first public statement since the shooting. “His mind and messages were clear: The adults responsible for protecting children must take real, meaningful action so that no child or family endures this kind of horror — in school or anywhere. Character is proven when tested, and our son showed and continues to show his loving, caring heart and principled mind.”

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