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Kayla Rolland in a 1998-1999 kindergarden class photo

Kayla Remembered

“I think it’s sad. She wasn’t old enough to die. She didn’t have a life yet,” said Amy Lamoreaux, 15, who baby-sat Rolland and described her as a happy child who liked to play with baby dolls.

Debra Jones, who said she is a friend of Kayla’s parents, went to the family’s home after learning of the shooting.

“She smiled all the time. she was just a sweet, sweet little girl,” Jones said, tears rolling down her cheeks. She said Kayla loved the TV character Barney.

Jana Nicks, 6, said she and Kayla were friends and liked to play duck-duck-goose and freeze tag in recess. “She was real nice and laughed a lot,” said Jana, who was in a separate first-grade class.

Kayla This Candle Burns For You!

Michigan first-grader fatally shot by classmate 02/29/00

MOUNT MORRIS TOWNSHIP, Michigan (CNN) - A 6-year-old girl was shot to death in her classroom Tuesday by a first-grade classmate with a stolen handgun, authorities said.

Kayla Rolland died at 10:29 a.m. of a single gunshot wound to the chest after being rushed to Hurley Medical Center by Emergency Medical Service workers, who said she was in cardiac arrest.

The suspected shooter was a 6-year-old boy who pulled a handgun from his pants pocket and fired one shot, Mount Morris Township Police Chief Eric King said.

The weapon, a .32-caliber handgun, was reported stolen in December, Genesee County Prosecutor Arthur A. Busch said, and it "somehow got in the boy's house," where he lived with his mother.

Kayla Rolland, 6, died half an hour after a classmate

allegedly shot her with a .32-caliber pistol.

MT. MORRIS TOWNSHIP, Mich. (ABC) - A 6-year-old boy accused of fatally shooting of a classmate at an elementary school near Flint, Mich., is too young to face criminal charges, prosecutors said.

     Instead, prosecutors will focus on how the child got the gun used in the killing, which may have occurred as a result of a playground scuffle.

     “We’re looking to see how that kid got that gun and if we get to that person we will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law,” Genesee County Prosecutor Arthur Busch told ABCNEWS’ Good Morning America.

     Police say the boy, who has not been named, went to Buell Elementary School with the .32-caliber pistol tucked into his pants. As most of his classmates went to the library — just five children were in the room at the time of the incident, with the teacher standing in the doorway — the boy pulled the gun out and aimed it at a student.

     Then, he turned and pointed it at Kayla Rolland, also 6, and shot her in the neck. She was pronounced dead at a hospital about 30 minutes later.

The victim’s father, Ricky Rolland, says he believes the boy did know what he was doing. He believes the boy went home after the playground scuffle between the two on Monday and got a gun to shoot his daughter.

First Grader Kills Classmate in Michigan School

MT. MORRIS TOWNSHIP, Mich. (Reuters) - A 6-year-old boy armed with a stolen gun Tuesday shot and killed his classmate, a girl his age, with a single bullet through the neck, the latest in a series of shootings in American schools. Police and witnesses said the boy showed off the .32 caliber handgun to other students while the first grade class and the teacher were leaving the classroom. He pointed it at another boy, then whirled around and shot Kayla Rolland once through the neck.

First-grader kills female classmate

MOUNT MORRIS TOWNSHIP, Mich., Feb. 29 (CNBC) —  In the latest school shooting to shock the nation, a 6-year-old boy shot and killed a female classmate in a Michigan classroom Tuesday. Police were investigating reports that the two youngsters may have had a playground scuffle the previous day.

CLASSMATES AND a teacher looked on in horror at Buell Elementary near Flint as the boy fired a single bullet from a .32-caliber gun, striking 6-year-old Kayla Rolland. She died a half-hour later.

Genesee County Prosecutor Arthur A. Busch said there may have been “some sort of scuffle or quarrel on the playground” between the boy and girl a day earlier in which one slapped the other.

The boy, whose name was not disclosed by authorities, was questioned by police and released. Police would not say where he was sent, but earlier in the day, Chief Eric King said the boy would be put into the custody of the state child welfare agency.

“His actions were naughty, in his mindset,” Busch said. “What he understood he did is another matter.”

The boy’s father is serving time in the county jail and the boy lived with his mother, a man referred to as an uncle and a younger sibling, Busch said. He didn’t know what the father was charged with.

Prosecutors did not say how they think the boy got the gun, though they said it had been reported stolen in December and was in the boy’s home.

Kayla Rolland is remembered by friends as a sweet little girl who was always smiling.

Governor Responds To Child's Shooting

Michigan Governor John Engler released a statement on Wednesday in which he responded to the tragic shooting that took place in Mount Morris Township on Tuesday. Engler said that he was shocked and saddened by Tuesday's shooting, and that there are no words that can express the sympathy that he has for the family of Kayla Rolland. The governor also stated that we have strict laws on the books that deal with weapons in schools, but unfortunately laws are not an adequate substitute for good parenting. Engler finished his statements by saying that as we all reflect on this tragedy, we are reminded of how precious and fragile life can be.

House Speaker Extends Condolences

Michigan House Speaker Chuck Perricone, a Republican from Kalamazoo Township, said that his heartfelt condolences go out to the families involved and to the students grieving the loss of one of their classmates in Mount Morris Township. Perricone stated that House Republicans, after decades of serving in the minority, initiated several significant measures to safeguard our children in the classroom. Perricone also responded to some comments made by Representative Laura Baird yesterday by saying that it is unfortunate that Representative Baird continues to renew her call for extreme measures while voting no on school locker searches and the school safety package. The House Speaker also stated that House Republicans will continue to do all that is reasonable and responsible to ensure that our children are safe.

Clinton wants meeting with lawmakers on gun safety

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Clinton, lamenting that 13 children are killed by guns every day in America, said Thursday he will seek a meeting with congressional leaders next week to "break the logjam" on legislation to require gun safety locks.

"We need the public aroused on this," Clinton said.

He said Congress has not passed the legislation because of "the heat the NRA (National Rifle Association) has put on them."

The president was interviewed on NBC's "Today" show in the wake of the fatal shooting Tuesday of a 6-year-old girl by a classmate in Michigan. A day later, a gunman killed two people and critically wounded three others in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania.

The president said America's gun death rate has dropped to its lowest level in 30 years but still is the highest of any major country. He said 13 children die from guns every day and that the United States has a higher child gun death rate than the next 24 biggest countries combined.

Clinton is seeking legislation that would require safety locks on guns, ban the import of large-capacity ammunition clips and require background checks before buying a weapon at gun shows. The House and Senate have passed separate versions of the bill but have not come together on a compromise.

The president also is proposing a system of photo IDs for gun owners and said he does not oppose the idea of licensing guns, although he said that poses logistical problems because there are upwards of 200 million guns in the United States.

"I'm not sure if practically we could get all the guns licensed," he said.

Complaining that Congress has not acted for eight months on stricter gun control, the president said, "I don't think most Americans have any idea what a stranglehold the NRA has had on this Congress. ... The reason they can't act is the heat the NRA has put on them." A spokesman was not immediately available at the NRA communications office.

The president also is asking Congress for money for research on smart-gun technology that would allow guns to be fired only by their adult owners.

"I'm going to call the leaders of both parties in both houses and ask them to come down here and break the logjam," the president said. "There's been a House version and a Senate version of this bill for eight months and they have done nothing. Meanwhile, 13 kids every day, every single day, there are 13 children who die from guns in this country. So I do think we need more legislation."

Please also remember the children at:

" And God Said"
I said, " God, I hurt."
and God said, "I know."
I said, "God, I cry a lot."
and God said, "That's why I gave you tears."
I said, "God, I am so depressed."
and God said, "That's why I gave you sunshine."
I said, "God, life is so hard."
and God said, " That's why I gave you loved ones."
I said, " God, my loved one died."
and God said, " So did Mine."
I said, " God, it is such a loss."
and God said, " I saw mine nailed to a cross."
I said, " God, but Your loved one lives."
and God said, " So does yours."
I said, " God, where are they now?"
and God said, " Mine is on My right and yours is in the Light."
I said, " God, it hurts."
and God said, " I know."

posted on the wall at the
Oklahoma City bombing site
by KC & Myke Kuzmic
Stockton, Ca.

Mourners say goodbye to Kayla on Friday

March 3, 2000

FLINT, Michigan (AP) -- Mourners paid their respects Friday to 6-year-old
shooting victim Kayla Rolland as the girl's body lay in a white casket with
gold trim, a small doll of the television dinosaur Barney at the base.
In her hands was a small card with a poem titled "I'm free."
"She was too young. She didn't even have a chance to grow up," said Buffy
Darling, one of the first visitors to the funeral home this morning. "I was
thinking about getting a handgun for protection. When I saw this on the
news, I said, 'No way."'

Funeral director Donald Lada passed out pink ribbons to each visitor. More
than 7,000 already had been pinned to lapels and tied to radio antennae, he
said.
Melissa Polacek, 20, came with a 6-year-old cousin, Kyle Cornelison. She
said she brought the child so he would understand what happened.
"He said it was sad and we talked about it a lot. I think he understands
better now," she said.
More than a dozen large floral displays surrounded the casket. Some visitors
brought stuffed animals and other small tokens such as flowers to leave at
the casket. Near the casket was a large poster board filled with signatures
and messages from students at her school.
Many say, "I'm sorry this happened."
A memorial service is planned Friday night. Outside Buell Elementary School,
where the girl was shot to death Tuesday in her first grade classroom, the
ground is carpeted with more than a hundred stuffed toys, all left in
Kayla's memory.
Genesee County Prosecutor Arthur Busch on Thursday charged Jamelle James,
19, with involuntary manslaughter in connection with Kayla's death.
Prosecutors said James kept a loaded pistol in easy reach of the troubled
6-year-old boy who allegedly took the gun and used it to kill Kayla, a
classmate.
The boy is in the custody of a maternal aunt with his two siblings. He has
not been charged and police have said he told them he sought only to scare
Kayla, not shoot her.
Prosecutors say James kept the .32-caliber semiautomatic pistol loaded,
twirled it in front of the boy, failed to keep it secure and created "an
atmosphere of reckless circumstances."
The Detroit News quoted U.S. Attorney Saul Green on Friday as saying his
office is looking into the possibility of filing federal firearms charges
against the boy, but said it is unlikely. Busch said Green hadn't said
anything about that to him and agreed it's not likely.
"I think Mr. Green would discuss that sort of thing with me," he said. "I
don't see this as something they would pursue."
Authorities allege James kept a loaded pistol within easy reach of the boy
inside the home of the child's uncle, Sir Marcus B. Winfrey. The boy had
been staying at the home for about two weeks because his mother was evicted
from her home, authorities have said. The boy's father is in jail.
Police say the boy called James "uncle," but the two are not related.
Winfrey was arrested on Tuesday on an unrelated stolen property charge, and
no grounds exist to charge him in the shooting, prosecutors said.
Bond was set for $100,000 at James' arraignment Thursday. He said only "yes"
when the judge asked if he understood the charge, and later made an obscene
gesture toward photographers.
James' lawyer, Jeffrey Skinner, said that he thought James' bond "is a
little high" but did not comment further.
The charge against James requires prosecutors to show gross negligence that
gave the boy access to the gun, Busch said. He said prosecutors also would
allege that James contributed to the delinquency of a minor.

Recent U.S. school shootings

Recent shootings at U.S. schools before Tuesday's death at Mount
Morris Township, Michigan:

December 6, 1999 -- A 13-year-old student fired at least 15 rounds at Fort
Gibson Middle School in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, wounding four classmates,
authorities said. Asked why he did it, he said "I don't know."

November 19, 1999 -- A 13-year-old girl was shot in the head in a school at
Deming, New Mexico, and died the next day. A 12-year-old boy is tentatively
set for trial in May.

May 20, 1999 -- A 15-year-old boy opened fire at Heritage High School in
Conyers, Georgia, with a .357-caliber handgun and a rifle, wounding six
students. He was charged with aggravated assault and other felonies.

April 20, 1999 -- Two students at Columbine High School in Littleton,
Colorado, killed 12 students and a teacher and wounded 23 before killing
themselves.

May 21, 1998 -- Two teen-agers were killed and more than 20 people hurt when
a teen-age boy opened fire at a high school in Springfield, Oregon, after
killing his parents. Kip Kinkel, 17, was sentenced to nearly 112 years in
prison.

May 19, 1998 -- Three days before his graduation, an 18-year-old honor
student opened fire at a high school in Fayetteville, Tennessee, killing a
classmate who was dating his ex-girlfriend. Jacob Davis was sentenced to
life in prison.

April 24, 1998 -- A science teacher was killed in front of students at an
eighth-grade dance in Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Andrew Wurst, 15, pleaded
guilty to third-degree murder and other charges and is serving 30 to 60
years in prison.

March 24, 1998 -- Four girls and a teacher were killed and 10 people wounded
at a middle school in Jonesboro, Arkansas, when two boys, 11 and 13, fired
from nearby woods. Both boys were convicted of murder and can be held up to
age 21.

December 1, 1997 -- Three students were killed and five others wounded at
Heath High School in West Paducah, Kentucky. A 14-year-old student pleaded
guilty but mentally ill to murder and is serving life in prison.

October 1, 1997 -- A 16-year-old boy in Pearl, Mississippi, was sentenced to
life in prison for killing his mother, then going to his high school and
shooting nine students, two fatally. The alleged mastermind pleaded guilty
earlier this year to a reduced charge of conspiracy and was sentenced to six
months a military-style prison program.

February 19, 1997 -- A 16-year-old boy took a shotgun and a bag of shells to
school in Bethel, Alaska, and killed the principal and a student and injured
two others. Evan Ramsey is serving a 210-year sentence

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