McALLEN, Texas (Reuters) - Police fatally shot a 15-year-old student armed with a pellet gun at a middle school in Brownsville, Texas, on Wednesday after he pointed it at officers, police said.
Brownsville police received a call of a student with a handgun at Cummings Middle School about 8 a.m. local time Wednesday, department spokesman J.J. Trevino said.
The boy, eighth-grader Jaime Gonzalez, aimed at officers after they confronted him in a hallway, police said.
Police ordered Gonzalez to drop the gun, but instead he pointed it at the officers, who shot the boy twice, police said.
"The subject pointed the weapon at officers, which in turn, the officers had to use deadly force," Trevino said.
The gun, a .177-caliber pellet pistol, resembles a Glock semi-automatic handgun, police said.
The student was rushed to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, said Cameron County Justice of the Peace Kip Johnson Hodge.
A preliminary investigation indicated Gonzalez assaulted a student before officers arrived and told witnesses he was going to "engage officers with the weapon," a police news release said.
No other students, school staff or police were injured. Students were evacuated to a nearby high school and classes were dismissed for the day.
The Texas Rangers will assist city and school police in investigating the fatal shooting.
Brownsville is at the southern tip of Texas along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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