Mendell School Principal Says Report of Shooting Outside School is Unsubstantiated; Police Say Investigation Continues

The principal at Mendell Elementary has told parents that reports that a drive-by shooting took place across the street from the school are unsubstantiated.

According to a police report, a drive-by shooting took place on School Street across from while school was in session Thursday at 1:30 pm, wounding a 19-year-old Hyde Park man in the leg.

The victim told police he was walking along School Street on the opposite side of the Mendell when a gray SUV driving toward Washington Street pulled up beside him, according to a police report. The vehicle drove a bit further past him and a passenger on the rear driver's side shot at him three or four times, according to that report.

Mendell Principal Julia Bott, in a recorded message to Mendell parents sent out on Sunday and in a letter to parents today, said there was no evidence such a shooting occured. The letter is available at the right as a PDF.

Boston Police, however, say the report that the shots came from an SUV driving along School street hasn't been determined to be false. Police say the investigation continues.

Bott said she is not supposed to speak to the media about the incident, but rather referred questions to the school's public information office. In her letter to parents, wrote that the "reporting officer stated that they confirmed 'no incident occurred on or near School Street,' but they were still investigating a reported incident to determine exactly where it occurred."

Bott also wrote that immediately after the alleged incident, police were telling her it didn't happen near the school.

"I spoke directly with several officers who stated that 'the reported incident was not
substantiated and did not occur on or near the vicinity of the school,'" Bott wrote.

The victim told police he had his cousin pick him up and take him to , where he was treated for, according to police, "possibly two gunshot wounds to the left leg." The injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

The Faulkner radioed police about a gunshot victim coming in at 2:04 pm.

Police searched the area where the shooting was said to have taken place and did not find any ballistic evidence, said Officer Eddy Chrispin.

Police subsequently arrested the cousin and charged him with operating with a suspended license.

According to a spokesman for the Boston Public Schools, the discrepancy between the principal's message and the official police report stems from the principal speaking to investigators while the investigation continues.

The school was put into "safe mode" after the report of the shooting, according to Matt Wilder, director of media relations for the schools. That means no one was allowed into or out of the school.

[Editor's note: Shortly after initial posting, this article was updated with a link to and quotes from the principal's letter.]