A tragic incident unfolded at a North Carolina school when a 16-year-old boy, who had brought a knife to campus, was fatally stabbed by a peer trying to disarm him, officials reported on Thursday.

District Attorney Jim O’Neill expressed the tragedy as “senseless” and classified the fatal event as “an accident,” as covered by WXII.

The altercation occurred on Tuesday morning at North Forsyth High School in Winston-Salem and was described as a fight between two students by CrimeOnline. The incident was caught on video, and authorities urged the public to refrain from sharing or commenting on the footage to respect those affected.

According to O’Neill, these videos, alongside witness testimonies, played a crucial role in the investigation.

The victim, Cameron Graham, had brought the knife to school, O’Neill explained. During the struggle, an 18-year-old student attempted to take the knife from Graham when it accidentally pierced Graham’s chest, leading to his death. Both students had grasped the weapon during the fight, resulting in injuries to the older student’s hands as the knife inadvertently struck Graham, damaging his heart.

“This was not an intentional act on the part of the 18-year-old. It was not. There is not a shred of evidence that suggests that this was anything more than an accident,” O’Neill said. “There is no probable cause in this case, no probable cause whatsoever to charge the 18-year-old.”

The 18-year-old has not been identified, but O’Neill said the two students were friends and had ridden the bus to school together and talked earlier Tuesday morning.

Graham’s family said they were “seeking legal counsel to assist with this investigation,” apparently disagreeing with officials’ determination the stabbing was accidental and attributing that decision to “Sheriff Kimbrough and the police department” and not the district attorney.

“We have lost two family members tragically, one shot ten times in the back, and now a fatal stabbing, and have received no justice,” Graham’s aunt, Charlita Summers, said. “We are asking that any legal entities that are willing to help look further into these investigations will come forward to help the family at this time.”

It’s not clear what shooting Summers referred to.

For his part, Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough Jr. said that metal detectors weren’t in use the day Graham brought his knife to school.

Kimbrough, Winston-Salem Police Chief William Penn Jr., and Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Don Phipps all said that school safety was a top priority and that metal detectors weren’t the sole answer.