20 Dec 98
This is from a friend with the State Police. This shooting took place earlier this month in a State office building. It involved a disgruntled employee:
The male suspect (in for a disciplinary hearing) had been holding his right hand inside his coat and over his heart for a period of time prior to acting. The surviving supervisor said she had noticed this, and it âmade her nervous,â but she said nothing. When the hearing was at a close, one of the two supervisors present stood and announced it was ending. The suspect then also stood and stated, “It’s at an end all right. It’s going to end right here!”
Saying no more, the suspect then drew a Ruger P85 (9mm) pistol from under his coat and started shooting. The evidence indicates that he had his hand on the pistol during the entire hearing.
Both of the suspectâs supervisors (both female) were hit. One was struck by a single bullet which penetrated both her liver and her heart. She died at the scene. The other absorbed at least two rounds, but they struck extremities (leg and hand). She survived. The range was very close. The brand of ammunition was not reveled.
The wounded supervisor probably survived, because, when the shooting started, she immediately started moving laterally and away, and the suspect was thus unable to lock on for a center hit. After firing at least two rounds at her, and seeing her subsequently fall to the floor, the suspectâs focus abruptly switched to escape, and he hurriedly exited the interview room via a window, pistol still in hand.
The office building where the incident took place was, as fate would have it, right next door to the State Police Headquarters. In his haste to escape, the suspect fell and broke his ankle, so his mobility was severely diminished from that point forward. Hobbling around, he encountered several non-sworn State Police employees in the front parking lot (gun still in hand) and stated, âDonât worry. Iâm not looking for you.â
A State Police captain (in uniform), who was in the building at the time, finally confronted the suspect on the steps leading into the State Police Building. His did have the presence of mind to use a pillar for cover. Upon seeing him, the suspect straightaway fired two shots in his direction. Both missed. The range was ten feet.
The captain hurriedly returned fire with five shots from his handgun. All five missed, low and left. The captain later stated that, after the initial exchange of shots, he became âfrustrated and bewilderedâ and, as a result, momentarily stopped firing at the suspect (even though the suspect still had a gun in his hand and still had it pointed in the captainâs direction), because the suspect was displaying very little reaction to (supposedly) being hit.
To his credit, the captain finally realized that he wasnât hitting anything he wanted to hit, got his head out of his ass, leveled his pistol on the suspectâs upper chest, focused on his front sight, and carefully (this time) fired four additional shots. This time, all four shots hit the suspect in the center of the chest. The dumbfounded suspect dropped his gun, wobbled for a few seconds, and then dropped to the ground. He was dead at the scene. The captain was unhurt.
Lessons:
When you have an uneasy feeling about the way a person is acting or some other apprehensive set of circumstances, get out of there! If you canât exit the area immediately, start looking for objects you can use for cover and start moving. Forget about everything else and think only about your personal safety.
When the shooting starts, be on the move! Donât stand still when the bullets are flying, unless youâre in a covered position or pausing only long enough to return fire.
It cannot be said too often! Panic shooting will not be helpful to you. It will only squander ammunition and precious time. When you shoot, REMEMBER YOUR TRAINING AND SHOOT CAREFULLY! Precise, deadly accurate shooting will end the fight faster than anything else you can do.
Finish the fight! Donât stop until additional shooting does not appear to be necessary. Keep your opponent at a continuous disadvantage. Donât relax too soon.
*****
Merry Christmas to all! Iâm looking forward to getting together with you again next year. Donât be afraid of victory!
/John
