The 15-year-old suspect’s parents have hired an attorney and have not permitted him to talk to police, authorities say

“My heart goes out to the families. This is an unimaginable tragedy. I hope we can all rise to the occasion and wrap our arms around the families, the affected children and school personnel and this community,” Whitmer said.

The suspect, a sophomore at the school, was taken into custody without incident five minutes after authorities responded to the shooting, McCabe said. His parents have hired an attorney and have not permitted him to talk to police, McCabe said.

How the shooting unfolded

McCabe said calls for an active shooter came in around 12:51 p.m. ET. Oxford is about 45 miles north of Detroit.

“We received over 100 911 calls to our dispatch center,” McCabe said.

The deputy who is assigned to Oxford High School and another deputy took the suspect into custody, McCabe said.

A handgun was recovered from the suspect, McCabe said. Authorities recovered multiple shell casings in the school and believe around 15-20 shots were fired. There is no indication the suspect was wearing body armor, McCabe said.

“At this point in time, we believe he acted alone,” McCabe said. He said that authorities are aware of how the suspect allegedly got the gun into the school, but declined to divulge those details.

All evacuated students were relocated to a nearby store for reunification with relatives. About 25 agencies and close to 60 ambulances responded, according to John Lyman, public information officer for the Rochester Hills Fire Department.

The families of the victims have been notified. It is not currently known whether the three students killed were targeted, McCabe said.

“We’ve done three sweeps of the high school to make sure there’s no other victims,” he said. “We don’t have a motive at this point in time. We are still investigating that.”

A search warrant has been executed at the suspect’s home, McCabe said.

McCabe said the suspect could be charged as an adult, but that is up to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office. Prosecutor Karen D. McDonald said in a statement Tuesday her office has “begun the process of receiving information regarding the investigation” into the shooting.

“I was both horrified and saddened to learn about the shootings at Oxford High School this afternoon. My office and I have been in constant communication with the Sheriff’s Office, the Oakland County Juvenile Court and other governmental and law enforcement bodies,” McDonald said. “It is our intent to review it thoroughly and issue appropriate charges quickly.”

Oxford Community School officials released a statement confirming the shooting and saying the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department secured the scene.

Superintendent Tim Throne said at the news conference the shooting left him shocked. “It’s devastating,” he said.

Throne declined to say why there were no metal detectors in the school, but did say that to his knowledge, metal detectors never came up in conversation prior to the shooting.

Student recounts barricading in classroom

Aiden Page, a senior at Oxford High School, told CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Tuesday the shooter was so close to his classroom that a bullet pierced one of the desks Page and other students used to barricade the door.

Page said everything kicked into high gear when he, other students and his teachers heard two gunshots.

“We heard two gunshots and after that, my teacher ran into the room, locked it, we barricaded and then we covered the windows and hid,” he said.

The class was on lockdown for an hour, Page said. During that time, some students armed themselves with whatever they could find.

“We grabbed calculators, we grabbed scissors just in case the shooter got in and we had to attack them,” he said. “Some were crying, some were trying to support others. Others were trying to come up with ideas just in case.”

Page said the entire experience was “insane” and he contemplated whether he would live through the ordeal.

“The very first thing in my head was, ‘Is this actually happening? I’m going to text my family, say I love them just in case, if I were to die.’ Then when everything calmed down for a second, I was able to catch my breath and rationalize things,” he said.

“It’s definitely going to be weird coming back, especially knowing people were injured and a couple of students died as well.”

President and state officials react to shooting

“You’ve gotta know that that whole community has to be in a state of shock right now,” Biden said.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said her department has offered assistance to local law enforcement and that she extended her “sincere gratitude” to the first responders on the scene.

“My heart goes out to the parents who have lost their children and to the students, teachers, staff, and families reeling from the tragedy of a school shooting within their community,” Nessel said. “We must act to properly address gun violence in our schools and the ongoing threat of another unconscionable tragedy if we continue to only offer thoughts and prayers. Our kids deserve better.”