Video Shows High School Coach Disarming, Hugging Shotgun-Wielding Student

Newly-released surveillance video captured the moment a high school football coach managed to deescalate a tense situation with an armed student. On May 17, 2019, Angel Granados-Diaz walked into Parkrose High School in Portland, Oregan, with a shotgun hidden under his jacket.

As students ran for their lives, Keanon Lowe, who is a football and track-and-field coach at the school, approached Diaz and took the shotgun away from him. Lowe handed the weapon off to another teacher and then embraced Diaz in a hug.

“I just wanted to let him know that I was there for him. I told him I was there to save him. I was there for a reason and that this is a life worth living.” Lowe said.

Authorities said that there was only one round in the shotgun and that Diaz brought it to school in the midst of a mental health crisis. He pleaded guilty to two charges related to having a loaded gun in a public place and was sentenced to 36 months of probation. He will also have to undergo mental health and substance abuse treatment.