Skip to main content
Tags: California High School Shooting

Teen Used 'Ghost Gun' in California High School Shooting

a female student overcome with emotion is is being comforted by a fellow classmate after a school shooting
This Nov. 14, 2019 file photo shows students being escorted out of Saugus High School after a shooting on the campus in Santa Clarita, Calif. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP)

Thursday, 21 November 2019 01:26 PM EST

The teenager who shot five classmates, killing two, at a Southern California high school used an unregistered “ghost gun,” Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Thursday.

Villanueva told media outlets Thursday that 16-year-old Nathaniel Tennosuke Berhow’s .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol was assembled from gun parts and did not have a serial number.

Berhow pulled the gun from his backpack on Nov. 14 — his birthday — in an open-air quad at Saugus High School in the Los Angeles suburb of Santa Clarita and in 16 seconds shot five students at random. At one point, the gun jammed but he quickly cleared it and continued shooting.

Berhow counted his rounds, Villanueva has said, saving the last bullet for himself.

Sheriff’s Lt. Brandon Dean of the homicide bureau said in a statement that authorities do not know who assembled the pistol or bought its components.

The sheriff said Berhow’s motive remains a mystery, even after investigators searched his home and interviewed 45 people. Berhow’s mother — who packed him corndogs, grapes and homemade cookies for lunch that morning — had no idea what was coming, Villanueva said.

Authorities said Berhow had shown no signs of violence and didn’t appear to be linked to any ideology or terrorist group.

The sheriff’s department is working with federal authorities to unlock Berhow’s cellphone, Villanueva said.

Berhow’s father was an avid hunter who died two years ago. He had six registered guns in the family’s home but they were seized in 2016.

Officials found several unregistered firearms in the home after the shooting and are working to determine where those and the weapon used at the high school came from.

Authorities have identified the dead as 15-year-old Gracie Anne Muehlberger and 14-year-old Dominic Blackwell.

© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Sign up for Newsmax’s Daily Newsletter

Receive breaking news and original analysis - sent right to your inbox.

(Optional for Local News)
Privacy: We never share your email address.

Newsfront
The teenager who shot five classmates, killing two, at a Southern California high school used an unregistered “ghost gun,” Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Thursday.
California High School Shooting
285
2019-26-21
Thursday, 21 November 2019 01:26 PM
Newsmax Media, Inc.
Join the Newsmax Community
Read and Post Comments
Please review Community Guidelines before posting a comment.
 

Interest-Based Advertising | Do not sell or share my personal information

Newsmax, Moneynews, Newsmax Health, and Independent. American. are registered trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc. Newsmax TV, and Newsmax World are trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc.

NEWSMAX.COM
America's News Page
© 2025 Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Download the Newsmax App
NEWSMAX.COM
America's News Page
© 2025 Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved