Shooting
On September 10, 2025, at approximately 12:30 p.m. MDT, a student at Evergreen High School opened fire with a revolver inside and outside the building. [6] According to authorities, the shooter fired about 20 rounds before taking his own life. [7]
Two students were critically injured during the attack. An 18-year-old student was shot in the head and chest, while a 14-year-old student was also seriously injured. [8] Security doors prevented the suspect from entering additional areas of the school, which authorities say likely prevented further casualties. [9]
Victims
The 18-year-old victim, later identified as Matthew Silverstone, suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest and underwent emergency surgeries. He survived after doctors resuscitated him twice during transport to the hospital. [10]
The 14-year-old victim was also critically injured but later released from the hospital in early October 2025. [11] According to his family, he confronted the shooter at close range, giving other students time to escape. [12]
Perpetrator
The shooter was identified as 16-year-old Desmond Holly, a student at the school. [13] After investigating Holly's phone, investigators reported that Holly had been exposed to extremist online material and appeared to have adopted neo-Nazi ideology in the months before the attack, [9] being radicalized by an "extremist network," but they didn't specify further. [14] [15] [16] Officials also indicated that he may have expressed interest in previous school shootings, though the precise motive remains under investigation. [17]
Investigators found that Holly had several TikTok accounts, filled with white supremacist symbols. According to the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism, he was active on the app's "True Crime Community," where participating users have a fascination of mass murderers and serial killers. His profile picture on the app was an edited image of Elliot Rodger, prepetrator of the 2014 Isla Vista killings. [18] A few days before the shooting, Holly posted a picture on the app in a pose similar to the perpetrator of the 2024 Abundant Life Christian School shooting with a shirt he made that was worn by Dylan Klebold during the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, [14] [18] he also shared the image of the Abundant Life Christian School shooter he was imitating in the post as well. [16] One user on the app encouraged Holly to be a "hero," also telling him to get a patch of the Black Sun, a Nazi-era symbol infamously worn by the perpetrators behind the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings and the 2022 Buffalo supermarket shooting. Tiktok banned all accounts associated with Holly two days after the shooting. [14] [18]
The Anti-Defamation League also claim Holly also had an account on Watch People Die, a "gore forum". He made the account between the Abundant Life Christian School shooting and the 2025 Anitoch High School shooting. In an email, administrators of the site claim Holly lied about his age to create the account, and he wasn't active on it. They refer to Holly and the Anitoch High School shooter as "unhinged losers". [14] [16]
The Anti-Defamation League further claim that they reported Holly's TikTok account to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI open an assessment into the account in July, and continued it until the shooting. They were trying to identify the name and location of the user behind the account, which they failed to do, therefore they had no probable cause for arrest or additional law enforcement action at the federal level. [16]
Aftermath
Jefferson County Public Schools closed Evergreen High School in the days following the shooting. [19] When classes resumed, the district assigned a full-time school resource officer to the campus and increased on-site security personnel. [20]
Hundreds of residents attended a community vigil the day after the shooting, with local leaders emphasizing unity and support for students and families. [21] A temporary support center was established to provide counseling services for students, parents, and staff. [22]
In the weeks after the shooting, officials investigated several potential threats reported on social media. These were ultimately determined to be either unfounded or trauma-related posts from students processing the event. [23]
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