2 Shot at NE Vocational School

At the school, there was horror and fear, but also relief that it hadn't turned out worse.

"God was very much here today," said Curtis Hochtman, the lead instructor.

The Excel Institute is a nonprofit organization co-founded a decade ago by former Redskins star George Starke and parking magnate John Lyon. About 100 students are enrolled there.

In the hallway, GED instructor Carmelita Winters was hugging staff members, saying she still could not believe what had happened. The gunman was "one of my top-of-the-line students, all his assignments in on time, no problems at all."

Starke arrived to assure everyone that the school would survive the incident. "We've had 10 years here without even a fistfight. We'll be back at school tomorrow. There are about 100 more students here who want to keep learning."

The trouble broke out as city leaders were having a news conference outside police headquarters to tout recent arrests. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) and Lanier were among those announcing the bust of a drug crew that allegedly was operating out of Langston Terrace in Northeast. Lanier raced from that event to the scene of the shooting when her assistant made the sign for a gun with one hand and mouthed "shooting" to her, she said.

The drug bust followed an 11-month probe. Officials said they confiscated one gun and $14,000 worth of heroin and crack cocaine. No one was charged with a violent crime. But Lanier and U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor said the amount confiscated is not the point.

"We will eliminate this drug trafficking issue for Langston Terrace," he said.

Staff writer Robert E. Pierre contributed to this report.