Student dies after being stabbed with scissors in classroom at high school in Baytown
18-year-old suspect in police custody, district confirms
Michael Horton, Digital Content ProducerBryce Newberry, Reporter
Gage Divin, Photojournalist, Houston, Texas
Corley Peel, Reporter
Published: December 17, 2025 at 1:16 PMUpdated: December 18, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Tags: News, Baytown, Crime, Stabbing, Local, Fight, High School, Sterling High School, Ross. S. Sterling High School, Goose Creek CISD
BAYTOWN, Texas – A Ross S. Sterling High School student in Baytown who was stabbed with scissors during a fight in a classroom has died.
The student was flown to the hospital by Life Flight after the incident.
The Baytown Police Department first confirmed that officers had responded to a report of a stabbing at a high school in the city Wednesday morning. The stabbing was reported at around 10:42 a.m.
KPRC 2 later confirmed that the stabbing happened during a fight inside a classroom at Ross S. Sterling High School in Baytown.
Two male students were involved, and one stabbed the other with a pair of scissors. Both were high school students. The suspect is 18 years old, and the victim was a minor.
Sterling was placed on a temporary hold Wednesday following the fight, according to the district. The parents of both students were notified. The hold has since been lifted, and there is no current threat to students or staff on campus, the district said.
The district later confirmed the student was flown to a hospital. At around 3:35 p.m., KPRC 2 reporter Bryce Newberry learned that the student had died.
Weather complications prevented Life Flight from landing at the school, the Baytown Fire Department confirmed. The student was taken by ambulance to Baytown Airport and flown from there.
The Goose Creek CISD Police Department will be leading the investigation. The district released a statement, saying it would not be releasing the identities of either of the students involved in the incident at this time.
KPRC 2 News reporter Corley Peel spoke with parents, many of whom said they will not be sending their children back to school Thursday due to trauma and safety concerns.
Parents received alerts that the school was on hold, and one mother, Tessa Drakos, shared the heartbreaking news she received from her son.
“I immediately text my son and he told me, he said, ‘Mom, my friend got stabbed,’” Drakos said.
He said her son’s close friend was the victim of the stabbing.
Drakos described the victim as a joyful and friendly young man who loved to make others laugh.
“He was the type of kid that would dress up in a clown suit just to make you laugh. He didn’t have an ill bone in his body. Everybody loved him,” she said.
Corley and KPRC 2 News Photographer Matt James saw Goose Creek ISD police outside the Baytown jail, where records show an 18-year-old is the only person booked on a murder charge.
The district has not released the names of the victim or suspect but confirmed Goose Creek ISD only arrested one student on a murder charge.
Drakos said many parents are keeping their children home as they process the tragedy.
“It’s just sad and we’ve got to do better. It doesn’t just take parents, it takes teachers, it takes a combination of everybody pitching in and doing our part,” she said.
Goose Creek CISD announced it will offer counseling services for students and staff starting tomorrow to help the community cope with the loss.
At around 3:45 p.m., Goose Creek CISD Police Department released the following statement:
“On December 17, 2025, a student at Sterling High School was transported from the campus by ambulance and later life flighted to the Texas Medical Center following a serious injury the student sustained during an altercation with another student. We have now learned that the student passed away. The other student is currently in police custody, and there is currently no known threat to the campus related to this situation. Because this is an ongoing criminal investigation, we will not be releasing additional information at this time. Instead, we ask the Goose Creek community to join us in supporting all students and staff in the aftermath of this tragedy, but particularly the family of the student who lost his life. Additional information about support and resources is being provided to parents and students.”
At 4:30 p.m., Goose Creek CISD released the following:
“Goose Creek CISD is not releasing student names at this time because the investigation is ongoing and involves both law enforcement and school administration, which makes student information subject to the confidentiality requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Public records regarding the criminal case may become available through local law enforcement and Harris County, as those entities are not subject to the same confidentiality laws as GCCISD.”
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