Three injured; gunman dead
GUNSHOTS rattled a peaceful, crammed library at Florida State University early Thursday morning, injuring three as hundreds of students barricaded themselves between bookshelves before police encountered and killed the gunman outside.
According to officials, one of the injured is in critical condition at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare. Another patient, Nathan Scott, was shot in the leg and now in good condition. The third victim was grazed by a bullet, treated and released at the scene.
Officers from both the school’s and Tallahassee police department responded quickly to the first reports of gunfire. The shooter, identified by authorities as FSU alum Myron May, was outside Strozier Library when police encountered him, asking him to drop his handgun.
“The suspect did not comply with the commands, and actually shot at one of the officers,” Tallahassee police spokesman David Northway said. “They returned fire, and the suspect was killed.”
Texts from the campus police department were immediately sent out to students, warning them to take refuge and stay away from windows while each floor of the library was being cleared. Loudspeaker warnings were also heard, worrying anxious students who huddled for protection.
Florida State cancelled all classes and exams Thursday in wake of the shooting, offering support through counseling services to those affected.
Investigators are meanwhile surveying the scene, interviewing witnesses, and trying to determine exactly what happened that morning. Tallahassee Police Chief Michael DeLeo said investigators are still looking to interview more witnesses, but it appears none of the victims were targeted for any specific reason.
Myron May, 31, was a 2005 FSU graduate, and four years later graduated from the Texas Tech University School of Law. He practiced law in both Texas and New Mexico, and moved back to Florida just a few weeks ago.
“Mr. May had a written journal and videos where he expressed fears of being targeted and that he wanted to bring attention to this issue of targeting,” DeLeo said. “A preliminary review of these documents and videos demonstrate that Mr. May was in a state of crisis.”
Authorities discovered that May had left desperate voicemails for an acquaintance hours before the shooting, pleading, “I do not want to die in vain.” Emails, texts, and social media revealed that May believed he was a target for the government which was harassing him and using a “direct energy weapon” to hurt him. He said that he had sent packages to 10 people that would “expose” what he thought was happening to him.
“I am currently being cooked in my chair. I devised a scheme where I was going to expose this once and for all and I really need you,” May said in a voicemail sent late Wednesday night.
Police believe May was in a paranoia-fueled state when he showed up to the campus library with a .380 semiautomatic pistol, shooting at three students and officers just an hour after leaving the grief-stricken voicemails.
DeLeo assured the public that the shooting was “an isolated incident and one person acting alone.”
“There is no indication of any threats to the university, the students or our community at this time,” the police chief said.
The library was surrounded that morning as investigators surveyed the area. Five officers from Florida State and Tallahassee police were placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure in officer-involved shootings.
Kelly Kalich was studying on the third floor when someone ran up the stairs around 12:30 am, shouting “There’s a gunman, there’s a gunman!” She was able to quietly grab her stuff and get out of there.
“Nothing goes through your head besides astonishment,” Kalich said. “Your jaw drops because…when you’re in a large place like that, that’s always your biggest fear.”
Students barricaded themselves with tables and bookshelves, reaching out to loved ones in tweets and texts while they waited anxiously for the all-clear.
Samantha Sillick messaged her father, “There’s a man with a gun in the library. I love you.”
Many feel as though the shooting, though terrible, could have been much worse—especially if police didn’t respond as quickly as they did.
“If there is any positive that we can take from this occurrence, it’s that the victim count was not greater,” said Florida Mayor-elect Andrew Gillum. “Today, we are all FSU.”
University Vice President for Student Affairs, Mary Coburn, said the decision to cancel classes came after “we learned the scope of the situation.”
“It became evident that there was a lot of impact on the students, and that seemed the wise thing to do,” Coburn said.
All campus buildings should reopen by Friday, and scheduled events will still proceed, according to FSU President John Thrasher.
“There will be many,” Thrasher said, “who will still be recovering physically and psychologically—and not just the students who were wounded or in the library.”
Kalich added, “Yes, the students who were in the library were affected. But the 40,000 students [of Florida State] lost their sense of security.”
(With reports from CNN, NBC News)
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Weekend November 22-25, 2014 Sec. A pg.8)
