DALLAS — A man was shot in the 7000 block of Gaston Avenue in a parking lot near Lakewood Presbyterian Church in Dallas shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday, police say.
Police say the man was taken to a hospital in stable condition and a suspect, identified by Dallas police as Clayton Matthews, was taken into custody. No other injuries were reported.
Matthews has been charged with aggravated assault, according to Dallas police.
Rev. Brad C. Denton, pastor of Lakewood Presbyterian Church, said its school would be closed on Friday following the shooting. Christmas break, Denton said, was already scheduled to begin following an early release at noon.
In a statement shared with parishioners, Denton provided additional details about the incident.
The shooting occurred shortly after the conclusion of the parochial school at Lakewood Presbyterian Church's annual Christmas program, Denton said, after an altercation broke out between two adults on the walkway outside of the school's gymnasium.
According to Denton, the shooting was "of a private and personal nature" and the church does not believe either party intended to harm any members of the student body or church at large.
After the shooting, Denton said, armed Lakewood Presbyterian Church personnel "acted decisively to engage and contain the attacker" while community members tended to the victim as Dallas Police Department and Dallas Fire-Rescue units were dispatched to the scene.
The church is collecting and providing "youth-specific counseling resources" to be distributed to the families who attended the Christmas program, Denton said.