Unfortunately- bad people do bad things. Blame guns, parents, schools or any other scapegoat you want, but bad people do bad things. Tuesday, a teenager was shot in Great Falls while walking to school. Two suspects were apprehended by the Great Falls Police Department and detained as possible suspects. The GFPD did a great job of keeping the community aware via social media. This also led to a rash of comments, on the post, that may or may not be helpful to fix the problem.

Folks- either you are part of the solution, or part of the problem. In my opinion, most of these comments are not helpful. My question to you is, what are you doing to make our community better? Keep reading to see some of the “best” comments, some are good and some are….you decide. Yes, I removed the names of the person that posted, but I did not edit the individuals posts.

No child or teen or adult should ever have to worry about being gunned down while walking to school in Great Falls. This is unacceptable and a crises for our entire community. Strong work GFPD and all involved. We need measures (education, mental health services, support for law enforcement, gun safety education and measures) put in place so this never happens again. We need to call on city, school and law enforcement leadership to put a coalition together of law enforcement, community leaders, healthcare professionals, social workers, school officials and teachers to come up with solutions to this problem.

Great Falls USED to be known as. Destination point for living. But its crime has escalated, almost beyond belief and it isn't the only city in Montana that has seen such. I am sure there are a number if reasons including more illegal drugs, no discipline at home, a lot of family values lost, out of control kids in schools as staff has their hands tied by parents...i could continue, but am sure readers can think of more. Sorry situation, prayers for the teen who took them shooting. PLEASE PEOPLE WAKE UP AND START DOUNG THE RIGHT THING ...STARTING AT HOME

All schools should have metal detectors along with body scan just like jails do to make sure there's not a single child bringing a weapon or anything like that in the schools

What has happened to my town! I hope the judge has zero mercy!

Sad that it takes that much for the GFPD to actually do something prayers for ALL involved

What is going on with Great Falls?! It used to be a great little Air Force town. It's even worse than Billings, now! We won't even visit GF, anymore.

Who gets the participation trophy for this one?

This is why my child is not in any school system! The educational system is a joke!

Thoughts and prayers for this kiddo. Everyone else should keep him in their thoughts and prayers also I don't know why they just say thoughts up there in the post, when it should be thoughts and prayers. Don't be afraid to pray

Hey everybody has prayed for the victims, I wonder if anything else would help ?

Our children deserve a safer childhood, not shooting drills instead of fire drills

Omg.... So sad! Sending healing prayers to everyone involved in law enforcement and the victim and the ripple effect of victims. Neighbors and the community as a whole. May God watch over this beautiful town and protect us all. Thank you for your continued, traumatic (I'm sure on all levels) duty, the officers involved for helping make it safer. You do make a difference. Many prayers are needed. It's time to grow closer as a whole community. Thank you for your service Great Falls Police Department. That.......... took a lot for a guy like me to share. So if I can start to change then it's possible for others too! There's hope. Just gotta believe there is...... Love is where it starts.

There is so much gun violence, NO ONE IS IMMUNE…. Prayers for this young person , who was walking to school. A nightmare!

What is this town coming to?

I could never imagine what these parents of all these boys are going through. As parents we have to do better than this. This is just sad on so many levels.

I hope they throw the book at those to kids

Ghetto Falls…..

Are you guys paying someone to remove comments? Y'all pulling a famous Twitter move?????

Can’t comments be turned off on posts like these? There are some very rude and disrespectful people in this world and they just let their true colors show when awful things like this happen. What awful people. Keep your selfish unnecessary comments to your selves.

I hope and pray that 15 year old young man pulls through. I cannot imagine what all of their families are going through right now.

I am not sure why people feel like they need to add their comments to a sad situation like this. So many comments were, prayers to all involved, great job to the Great Falls Police Department for quick action and what can I do to help? Once again, if you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. Great Falls, Cascade County, Montana and the United States…..we can do better!

If you have a story idea or something you want to learn more about, send Randy an email at randall.bogden@townsquaremedia.com

Updated post from GFPD on 2.21.23 at 3:30 pm MST:

Great Falls MT Police Department

NEWS RELEASE regarding the shooting incident from this morning (2/21/23). Please be mindful of your comments. Anything that violates our page rules will be deleted and the user risks being banned from the page.

GREAT FALLS, MT – On February 21st, 2023, at approximately 7:53 AM, police responded to the 1600 block of Valeria Way for a 15-year-old shooting victim. People in the area heard gunshots and then heard the victim yelling he had been shot. Upon arrival, police learned the victim was walking to school at Great Falls High School (GFHS) when the incident occurred. Police were also provided the names of two suspects who had fled the area on foot.

Police were told the suspects fled the area going south, away from the school. Even considering the suspects’ direction of travel and out of caution, the School Resource Officer (SRO) at GFHS was immediately notified and both GFHS and Longfellow Elementary were placed into shelter-in-place.

At approximately 8:14 AM, the first suspect, a 16-year-old male, was detained at a nearby residence. The 16-year-old male has withdrawn from Great Falls Public Schools (GFPS) and is no longer a student. At approximately 8:37 AM, a 15-year-old male was detained at a separate residence. Further investigation revealed neither of these suspects were responsible for the shooting.

During the course of the investigation, police identified a third juvenile suspect. This suspect was placed into custody at the residence where the 16-year-old male was located (above). The suspect is a 14-year-old East Middle School student, who is currently a Homebound student. Homebound students receive educational services on-line and are not allowed on school property.

The suspected firearm has been located and is in police custody. The 14-year-old suspect is being charged with Assault with a Weapon. The investigation is on-going.

This afternoon, the victim is out of surgery and in stable condition. Please keep the victim and his family in your thoughts. Obviously, this incident could have had much more tragic results.

The incident was not random and results from on-going disagreements. This by no means excuses this behavior, even on-going disagreements should never result in violence.

GFPS and GFPD, through the SRO program, investigate threats to students on a continual basis. However, this is a team effort. Parents and guardians, please talk to your children about communicating any threatening behavior to a responsible adult.

Something to lightener the mood:

The Funniest Bumper Stickers & Vanity Plates Our Fans Have Seen in Montana

Station listeners, readers, and Facebook followers sent in the funniest phrases or photos they've seen on bumper stickers and vanity plates across Montana. Take a look at a few of them below. (Warning: Some graphic and inappropriate humor included)