Parents speak out after daughter narrowly escapes being shot at Franklin HS

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The parents of a girl who narrowly escaped being shot at the doorstep of her school are speaking out.

There’s been a lot of talk about school safety after the shooting at Franklin High School. The gunman fired point-blank range at a 16-year-old boy. Two girls were caught in the line of fire and thankfully were not hurt. News10NBC spoke to one of the girls and her parents about this terrifying experience and the answers they’re still trying to get from school leaders.

As you can imagine 14-year-old Skylynne Delgado tells me she is traumatized by this shooting. She has nightmares and is afraid to return to school. Her parents say they are fearful for their daughter’s life and to make matters worse they have not received a response to questions they have from school officials.

“And that’s when we heard one shot and we just slammed against the door and tried to bang it,” Delgado said. “And then the boy came running and he slammed against the door and then we heard more bullets flying.”

Delgado says what started as a typical morning, her and her best friend talking while walking to school, turned scary fast. As they approached the school doors and rang the doorbell that’s when they were face to face with a gunman firing shots at another student. Trapped in between the crossfire, Skylynne says she could only do one thing.

“That’s when we all kind of ducked,” she said. “Well he was ducking and we started ducking. Then thankfully her prayers were answered. The bullets stopped and the door opened and we got inside,” she said.

Skylynne says her life flashed before her eyes. Although she wasn’t hurt physically, mentally she is scared by this incident.

“I’m traumatized,” she said. “I have dreams of shootings. The dreams are really scary.”

Skylynee’s parents Alberto and Johanna transferred her to Franklin High in November thinking it would be safer since it’s closer to home. After seeing a picture and video on social media of the shooting Johanna was sick to her stomach and broke into tears.

“When it happened I was at work, the principal called me and told me my daughter and her friend was a witness of a shooting,” she said. “He did not say this happened right in front of the door. He made it seem like it happened across the street. So Friday that’s when I saw how close my daughter was to the shooter.”

After the shooting, they went to speak to the school administration but say they were given the runaround.

“We are trying to find out what’s going on and it’s not right,” she said. “That’s not how you treat the parents of a child or something that has occurred like that.”

Right now they are focused on helping Skylynee recover from this near-death incident. She still hears gunshots ringing in her head.

“She needs therapy she may say not right now just counseling no I’m working already her first appointment to get her a referral.”

Johanna believes the intervention that saved her daughter came from above.

“The moment that that was happening I know that my mother was there protecting my daughter.”

Thankfully the shooter’s gun jammed, saving the lives of Skylynee, her best friend and that 16-year-old student who was being chased by the gunman. Alberto and Johanna, as you can imagine, are upset about this incident and how it’s being handled by the school. Their message to parents: Be aware of what steps school officials have in place to ensure the safety of your kids.

More about Franklin High School incident:

• Uvalde Foundation looking into student safety at Franklin High School (Jan. 21)
• City Council to vote next week on putting police on school grounds (Jan. 17)
• Change groups say gun violence is violating “basic right of safety” (Jan. 16)
• RPD outside five city high schools after shooting last week (Jan. 13)
• RCSD school board not interested in reinstating school resource officers (Jan. 11)
• RSCD board votes to station police outside some schools after Franklin High shooting (Jan. 10)
• Exclusive video shows more details about shots fired outside Franklin High School (Jan. 10)
• Four Rochester school district employees put on leave after leak of security video showing students escaping gunman (Jan. 9)
• Officers stationed outside Rochester high schools after Franklin student was nearly shot (Jan. 9)
  ‘I watched somebody’s children ducking bullets’: Video shows shooting at Franklin HS (Jan. 6)
• …“School is supposed to be a second safe place to be, besides home, and unfortunately it isn’t” (Jan. 6)
• Suspect chased student and fired shots outside Frankin High school, no one injured (Jan. 5)