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A 16-year-old student was seriously injured in a stabbing inside West Potomac High School in Mount Vernon after three students became involved in a physical fight, Fairfax County police said.
The altercation occurred at about 9:40 a.m. on April 23. Videos circulated online showed dozens of students witnessing the violence and the injured teenager lying bloodied on the hallway floor.
The victim was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, but police later said the teen’s condition had improved to stable.
Police arrested a 15-year-old student and charged the teen with malicious wounding. Investigators recovered the knife used in the stabbing and said the suspect and victim knew each other.
A third person who was near the fight was being interviewed. Police Chief Kevin Davis said investigators did not expect to charge that person, but wanted to determine what the individual knew. He cautioned that video of the incident did not reveal the entire story.
Worried parents gathered at the school after receiving texts and videos from students inside. Some became frustrated when officials initially prevented students from leaving or being signed out.
Davis acknowledged the trauma experienced by witnesses but said officials had to consider the possibility that releasing emotional groups of students could lead to retaliation nearby.
“They’re teenagers; they’re kids. They need their parents,” Davis said, adding that what the students endured deserved attention.
Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Michelle Reid said parts of the building remained restricted because the school was also an active crime scene. She said the district brought counseling teams to campus to provide students with support before they left.
Classes continued under a modified lunch schedule. Reid said administrators first needed to manage the school’s four lunch periods safely and calmly before arranging an orderly early dismissal for families who wanted to take students home.
One parent told Reid that his daughter should be considered another victim because she witnessed the stabbing and was pleading to leave. Reid responded that the leadership team’s immediate priority was ensuring the campus remained safe.
The stabbing also raised questions about school security. Reid said FCPS was conducting a weapons-detection pilot during the spring, but the equipment was deployed at another Fairfax County school that morning.
The pilot began during the week of April 21, 2025, with security officials planning to place the screening system at a randomly selected high school at least once a week during morning arrival. According to FCPS, the scanners are designed to distinguish potentially dangerous metal objects from everyday items such as coins and can detect weapons including knives and firearms, as well as components that could be used to build an explosive device.