Deadly stabbing at Harding High School in St. Paul: Latest updates, victim ID'd

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Classes are canceled at Harding High School in St. Paul on Monday after a stabbing left a student dead on Friday. Trauma teams are at all St. Paul schools to help students cope with this tragedy in the days ahead.

The St. Paul teacher's union has planned a candlelight vigil at 6 p.m. Monday outside of Harding High School.

What we know about Harding HS stabbing

St. Paul police confirmed a 15-year-old student was fatally stabbed by another student at Harding High School on Friday, Feb. 10. 

On Monday, the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s office identified the victim as Devin Scott, 15, of St. Paul.

Sgt. Mike Ernster said the school followed its safety procedures and went into lockdown at approximately 11:45 a.m. Friday. Police were called to the school, and when they arrived, they found school staff members providing aid to a 15-year-old boy who had "apparent stab wounds." It was the victim's first day at Harding High School.

The victim was taken to Regions Hospital, where he died. Officers located a possible suspect, a 16-year-old student, and took them into custody. Criminal charges have not yet been filed.

The school began dismissing students early at 1:20 p.m. and canceled all Friday evening activities and weekend events at the school, the district and police said.

The incident marked the first homicide in St. Paul in 2023

Demands for more security in St. Paul schools

While parents are concerned about guns in schools, for many in St. Paul, Friday's deadly fight has shifted the focus to what's being done to stop students from settling their arguments with violence.

Those inside Harding High School at the time say the two students involved had a complicated history and the situation escalated because one was armed with a knife.

Violence involving SPPS students

This wasn't the first violent incident involving students this month. In fact, it's the third incident in about three weeks.

In late January, a 16-year-old was shot in the head at the Jimmy Lee Rec Center across the street from Central High School.

A few days later, a teacher was grazed by a bullet outside Washington Technology Magnet School. 

Community leaders held an emergency meeting this weekend, pushing for increased community patrols around schools. The meeting was held inside Miki Frost’s Truce Center, a place he created to mentor kids in the community and resolve disputes among them. 

"We have lost control of our community, that sense of a village," Frost said. "We all knew each other, cared about each other, respected each other, those days are gone…This young brother last night did not deserve to lose his life. That was his very first day going there, and he lost his life on his first day."

The group plans to show up at the next school board meeting to lay out their plans to keep students safe. 

"Stand outside of the school, stand out in front of the school, let’s start patrolling around," Frost said.

Superintendent: ‘Our kids are hurting’

"We are not okay," St. Paul Superintendent Joe Gothard said in a recorded statement Friday. "Our kids are not okay as evident by this event has also been marked with other incidents throughout our city. Whether it's in our schools or in our community that tells us that our kids are hurting."

"Our staff are struggling to support them and know what to do and this is time for us once again to come together, to work together, to make sure that we're supporting everyone in coming through in these times of great grief and tragedy as we move forward together."

St. Paul Board of Education statement (Feb. 10)

Today, the SPPS community lost a precious young person to violence. The Board of Education's thoughts are with the family and friends of this young person and the entirety of the Harding community, whose lives will be forever changed by their experiences. There will be time to talk, listen, and act but for now, let us sit with the heaviness of our grief and find ways to be a comfort for one another. We ask our Saint Paul neighbors to hold our hurting community close to their hearts and be a source of strength to lean on in the days to come.