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Jonesboro to bury last 3 shooting victims Saturday

victims
Three shooting victims to be buried Saturday  
March 28, 1998
Web posted at: 8:58 a.m. EST (1358 GMT)

JONESBORO, Arkansas (CNN) -- Two young girls and a teacher who will be remembered as a heroine were to be buried in this shocked town on Saturday, the last of five victims shot dead in a hail of gunfire in Tuesday's attack at a middle school.

Hundreds of mourners were expected to attend the funerals of Stephanie Johnson, 12; Brittheny Varner, 11; and Shannon Wright, 32. Wright, an English teacher, was shot twice when she tried to shield a student from the spray of bullets.

Two other victims -- Paige Ann Herring, 12, and Natalie Brooks, 11 -- were buried Friday.

Eleven other people were injured at Westside Middle School. All were expected to survive.

During both services on Friday, Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On," the theme from the movie "Titanic," was played.

Reporters were asked to keep a respectful distance from mourners. Cameras were not allowed inside during the services.

arriving
Mourners file into the church for Natalie's funeral Friday  

Hundreds mourn at Friday's funerals

Paige was not quite two weeks past her 12th birthday when she died. An estimated 500 mourners came to remember her on Friday, filling a 300-seat chapel and spilling into an entryway.

"God did not leave Jonesboro on Tuesday," the Rev. Gary Cremeens told the crowd. "God wants us to be (a) beacon of hope, light and love to a world that needs it so badly."

"The healing cannot begin until we forgive," Cremeens said.

A remembrance card included a Biblical quote from the Book of Revelations 21:4: "And God shall wipe all tears from their eyes."

Natalie was laid to rest just two days before she was planning to participate in a mass baptism at the Refuge General Baptist Church.

Extra

  • Interactive Map: Recent shootings at U.S. schools

  • Statistics: School violence at a glance

  • Message Boards: Are our schools safe?

    • "I've thought a lot about that," said the pastor, the Rev. Larry Ward. "Maybe Natalie got baptized in the river of life, by the very hand of Jesus. She's in the presence of the Lord."

    About 500 people filled the funeral home for her service, where Natalie was remembered as a girl who was always smiling, and who carried the Bible her grandmother had given her to school every day.

    Police say fellow schoolmates Mitchell Johnson, 13, and Andrew "Drew" Golden, 11 are responsible for the slaughter.

    The boys are being held on five counts each of murder and 10 counts of battery. Police say they dressed in camouflage, armed themselves with rifles and handguns, then ambushed classmates and staff members who were leaving the school building after the boys triggered a fire alarm.

    Under Arkansas law, neither boy can be charged as an adult. Officials say if the juveniles are found "delinquent," it is unlikely they will be held past their 18th birthdays.

    The Justice Department had been reviewing the case to see if there is a federal statute that could result in a stiffer penalty. But senior justice sources told CNN Friday that the department decided not to intervene in the case after federal prosecutors determined no statute would yield a tougher punishment. An official announcement is expected on Monday.

    Correspondent Jeff Flock and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

     
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