Student dies after shooting at Arlington Bowie High School; 17-year-old suspect in custody

An 18-year-old student was killed in a shooting Wednesday afternoon on the campus of Bowie High School in Arlington, and the suspected shooter — a 17-year-old student — was arrested, police said.

The victim, who police said was shot five or six times, was transported to Medical City Arlington hospital, where he died shortly before 3:30 p.m. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identified him as Etavion Barnes.

Jail records identify the suspect as Julian Howard. He was booked into the city jail about 8 p.m. and faces charges of murder and possession of a controlled substance.

The motive for the shooting is under investigation but police believe the victim and suspect knew each other. The suspect was taken into custody near the school.

Bowie High School was placed on lockdown and students were kept there for over two hours as authorities investigated the shooting and secured the campus.

Barnes was shot near a portable classroom building.

“Our hearts are with the entire Bowie High School community tonight, “ Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said at a news conference Wednesday night. “We, as a community, cannot tolerate this kind of violence. Not in our neighborhoods and not in our schools. Violence is never the right answer. We will continue to work in lock step with our partners at Arlington ISD to ensure our schools are safe spaces where students can learn.”

The Arlington Independent School District announced shortly before 3 p.m. that the campus, at 2101 Highbank Drive, was locked down and students would not be dismissed on time. The school has 2,250 students and several hundred staff members.

“Bowie High School is on lockdown due to an on-campus shooting outside of the school building,” the school district said in an emailed statement. “Arlington Police Department is responding. We are planning to reunite students and families when it’s possible to do so.”

Shortly after 4 p.m., parents were told to go to the AISD Athletics and Aquatics Center, at 1001 E. Division St., to reunite with their children, who would be bused to the center. The public was asked not to go to the school campus.

Around 4:30 p.m., an announcement was made to parents waiting at the reunification site that it might be about an hour before students arrived there. Some buses could be seen leaving the school around 5 p.m.

“Please understand we have very strict safety protocols we must follow — and so the process of releasing students / staff and busing them to the reunification center will take some time,” police said.

Parents and guardians were told to check in at the natatorium next to the Athletics Center. Parents were told to bring identification and enter the Athletics Center from the entrance off Division Street. Overflow parking for reunification was made available at Lot 11 at AT&T Stadium.

One mother, Erica Sims, whose daughter is a sophomore, started trying to get to her daughter as soon as she heard about the shooting, she said as she waited at the reunification center.

“I panicked of course. I’ve been trying to find my child and I can’t find my child,” she said.

Sims and her family live in the neighborhood close to the school and she said she drove around looking for her daughter until she was told to go to the athletics center. She initially couldn’t find a place to park but eventually was able to get in.

Sims also has a son who is a senior at Bowie High but he left school early for the day.

When Sims first heard what happened, “My heart dropped,” she said. “I didn’t want it to be my child. I don’t want it to be anybody’s child.”

Sims texted her daughter several times, asking, “Baby, are you there? Are you there? Were you shot?”

Sims said she doesn’t know how to move on from this. She has told her kids to keep their phones on silent, Airpods in their ears and to stay in contact if anything like this ever happened.

“We never had to learn this coming up,” she said. “We never had to learn how to shelter in place.”

A Bowie High teacher who spoke anonymously to the Star-Telegram says security measures are not taken seriously at the school.

“I’m not surprised that this happened. It’s been a very mismanaged school for several years and the security is a joke and nobody does their job,” said the teacher.

The teacher said they have been trying to get the school’s administration to “crack down” on security this school year, including checking that the students wear their IDs or show their IDs to get into the building.

“It’s not a safe building,” said the teacher. They added that the metal detectors at the school are not as effective as they should be.

“They can be successful... but it’s very easy to sneak something in, very easy, especially at the beginning of the day when a bunch of kids are going through them. It’s not monitored really,” the teacher said.

At a news conference Wednesday night, the police chief said investigators don’t yet know whether the suspect had the gun inside the school building at some point.

A school safety law that took effect in Texas in September requires armed security at every campus. Bowie High has one school resource officer listed on the district’s website.

The teacher who spoke to the Star-Telegram moved kids into their classroom from the hallway when they and their students heard the gunshots. From their classroom, they could see blood from where the student was shot.

“It didn’t really hit me until after I got home because... I don’t know, you’re in shock, you know? It’s just not something you expect,” the teacher said. “We have to do better... When are we gonna take it seriously? And I’m tired of just sort of waiting for it to get better.”

A Bowie High senior who was dismissed early for the day said she used to have classes with the victim. Students have heard the shooting may have happened after a fight or disagreement between two students.

“It was very shocking knowing that happened at my school because I did always have that fear knowing that it happened at other schools around me in Arlington,” the senior told the Star-Telegram. She also lives in the neighborhood and was at home when she said she heard “the chaos” of ambulances and police arriving at her school.

This was the third shooting at a school in the city of Arlington within three years.

In March 2023, 16-year-old Ja’Shawn Poirier was killed when a classmate opened fired outside Lamar High School before classes began for the day.

In September, a Tarrant County jury in juvenile court handed down a maximum 40-year sentence to the 16-year-old shooter, who also wounded another student. The teen began serving his sentence at a juvenile facility and could later be transferred to an adult prison.

In October 2021, four people were injured in a shooting at Timberview High School, which is in Arlington but part of the Mansfield school district. The 19-year-old defendant in that case, Timothy Simpkins, was convicted at trial of attempted capital murder. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

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“Words fail me this evening as we grapple with this tragedy that has impacted our entire Bowie High School family,” Arlington ISD Superintendent Matt Smith said in a statement. “Our schools should be safe places where students love to learn and grow, so we’re devastated that violence disrupted that mission.”

David Barrera recently threw his granddaughter her quinceañera. He found about about Wednesday’s shooting when his granddaughter texted his wife.

“Where is Popo?” she asked.

Standing in front of the athletics center waiting for his granddaughter to show up, he experienced waves of emotion. Frustration and anger and fear to relief and thankfulness that she’s alive.

“I’m sad for the person who was shot,” he said. “I’m not glad for any of this. I’m frustrated. I’m angry.”

His granddaughter texted him updates throughout the experience. At one point she said she and other students were told to leave their belongings in the hallway and walk with their hands in the air to the library.

That was a good sign, he said. Walking with their hands in the air meant police were there and she was safe.

Then she told him she’d been loaded on a bus. When they were halfway there she texted him again.

Barrera said he’s reminded his granddaughter to breathe and to pray a prayer her grandmother taught her. He was in Garland when he got the call from his wife that there had been a shooting at their granddaughter’s school. He said he got to Arlington in what felt like just 20 minutes, still wearing his work uniform.

“I’ve always made her a promise that I will always protect her,” Barrera said. “If she’s ever in danger, I’ll be there. I don’t care if I have to fly. I’ll be there.”

Barrera got a little choked up as he talked about how he taught his granddaughter to ride a bike. Taught her how to fish. It was the relief coming, along with thoughts of “what if?”

She’s maintaining her composure, Barrera said, and he’s going to do his best to keep his, for her sake.

Barrera planned to let his granddaughter catch her breath, process her emotions and come to him if she wants. After a little while, he said they’ll sit down, talk about everything that happened and pray together.

When 15-year-old Amiah Barrera walked up to her grandfather, she clung to him. They both had tears in their eyes.

“Don’t let go,” she told him.

“Just breathe, your granddad’s here,” David Barrera said.

After they parted and Amiah Barrera, her father, mother and three little brothers started walking away, David Berrera said he’s glad it wasn’t worse.

“I’m glad this wasn’t another Uvalde.”

More Bowie High parents reacted on social media to news of Wednesday’s shooting.

“I’m just ready to hold my daughter,” one woman posted.

“My daughter texting like crazy! I’m so anxious we are not allowed near the school I’m close by trying to to keep calm,” another woman said.

“My daughter is freaking out and has been texting me the whole time. She just sent me video of them doing CPR on a kid outside her class,” another person posted on social media.

“Why not be honest and say there was a shooting. Parents need to be informed!!! I had to find out from a text from my child,” a woman wrote in response to an initial post that police were at the school investigating an incident and dismissal wouldn’t happen on time.

Arlington police said in a post on X at 3:09 p.m. that officers were at the scene investigating an incident and later confirmed it was a shooting.

Classes at Bowie High normally dismiss at 3 p.m. Arlington ISD first posted an alert on its website about the lockdown at 2:56 p.m.

The shooting was reported about 2:50 p.m., according to a police call log.

Before students were allowed leave the campus, each classroom was cleared one-by-one by Arlington police officers, the district said. Students and staff were transported at intervals on 50 buses from the school to the athletics complex.

Arlington ISD has canceled classes at Bowie High School for Thursday and will make a decision later about whether classes will be held Friday. “When students return to class, they will have the full support of our counseling team for as long as needed,” the district said.

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