Police records show Bend school shooter was twice assaulted and said he was bullied

Police records show that the 16-year-old who killed three children and a teacher at a school in Bend, Oregon, was himself the victim of assault on two occasions in recent years. Two other people were injured in the attack.

Griffin John II opened fire on a special-needs classroom at Silver Rail Elementary School on Oct. 15. He was killed by a man who has two daughters at the school. Law enforcement is still investigating John and any possible motive, and much about him remains unknown.

The reports add to earlier court and police records obtained by NBC News, which described a tumultuous home life. Both of John's parents had been involved in violent encounters and run-ins with law enforcement, and the family faced financial instability.

The first incident took place in 2022, when John was 11. According to a Bend police report first obtained by NBC affiliate KGW, a friend of his sister assaulted him at home. His mother, Shauntai Nickerson, told police the friend slapped him across the face, chipping a tooth, and punched him in the back of the head.

Nickerson told the responding officer that John "had special needs." The officer wrote that he appeared to have a cognitive disability, citing his "non verbal speech communication and speech patterns." The officer noted a small chip on one of John's lower front teeth.

John told the officer the friend asked whether he wanted to fight after he got home, then slapped him and punched him in the back of the head "4 to 6 times." His sister told police that John had been upset and crying earlier because, he said, he was being bullied at school. According to the officer, John worried about reporting the bullying because "his mom would get upset." Police could not reach the friend, as all numbers tied to the friend were disconnected or out of service.

A little more than three years later, in 2025, a second report describes John being punched multiple times by a man with whom Nickerson had a relationship. Nickerson told police she had been arguing with the man about his involvement with other women and had put his belongings outside her apartment. The man came to the door, banged on it and eventually forced his way in, according to the report.

John told police the man threatened to beat up both him and his mother. When the dispute turned physical, John said he tried to stand up for her. "[He] began to get violent, and I didn't want him to hurt my mom at all," John told police. He said the man shoved him twice, causing him to drop his phone, and then "bodyslammed" him to the ground. John said the man punched him in the head about 12 to 14 times.

The man fled when Nickerson called 911 and he learned police were on the way. Nickerson and John ultimately chose not to cooperate with an investigation or pursue charges, saying the matter had been resolved, according to the report.