NEW SHARON, Maine — A Maine teen died from a self-inflicted gunshot while video-chatting with a friend on Monday, according to Franklin County Sheriff Scott Nichols.
Nichols said there are no charges pending as a result of the investigation. He said the victim was a student at Mt. Blue.
The incident happened at the teen's home on Industry Road in New Sharon. Police responded to the scene just before 3 p.m. Monday.
The event is not suspicious and is considered to be the result of a horrific accident, Nichols said.
The gun was in a closet inside the victim's home. The friend knew something was wrong when the victim stopped responding.
“We are doing everything we can to do outreach and make sure we’re looking out for those that are impacted the most," RSU 9 Superintendent Tina Meserve said. "We have also done direct contact with people we know who were in close contact with that student throughout their entire educational career.”
Meserve said the school district has brought in a crisis team, which has put together resources for students and staff. The school will be open again from 10 to 2 for for people looking for support, and they are also doing some Zoom support for staff and students that need it but don’t want to come into the school.
“ A lot of staff we share between buildings so the impact on staff when we have a death of a student can be really deep and spread out around the district," Meserve said. "And same with our community, our community is small, we know everybody so the family and friends of the students are impacted in ways that are more complex than say in a larger city where people don’t know each other as well.”
New Sharon first responders and Northstar personnel assisted at the scene.
According to Nichols, Maine State Police, the State Medical Examiner’s Office, and the District Attorney’s Office were notified of the death.