One dead, three injured in shooting at Seattle Pacific University
One person has died of gunshot wounds and three other people were injured Thursday afternoon in a shooting on the campus of Seattle Pacific University in Seattle, Washington. Police have one suspect in custody.
One female victim is still in critical condition, while two male victims are in "satisfactory" condition, Harborview Medical Center sources told KIRO.
The deceased victim was 19 years old. The other three victims are in their early 20s. All are believed to be students of the university. Three of the four victims suffered gunshot wounds.
The suspected shooter, 26, is in custody, Seattle police said. The suspect, a white male who was not a student at SPU, was disarmed by university staff, according to police, after entering Otto Miller Hall on the university's campus.
A building monitor confronted the shooter, according to police, as the suspect was reloading a shotgun. The monitor, a student, pepper-sprayed and tackled the suspect, then was joined by other individuals in neutralizing the shooter before police arrived.
.@KIRO7Seattle LIVE NOW: a student monitor subdued shooter while reloading, other students helped pin shooter down #SPUshooting
— RolandKIRO (@RolandBailie) June 6, 2014
The shooting occurred at around 15:30 PST.
The suspect had "an intent" not to shoot randomly, a Seattle police sourcetold KING 5 News. The shooter appeared to act alone, police said.
#SPUShooting victim update: 1 dead 1 critical female 2 stable PHOTOS >> http://t.co/sr2pksOQeD Watch KIRO 7 now. pic.twitter.com/HWBSx1dZgH
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) June 6, 2014
“The campus is in lockdown due to a shooting in Otto Miller Hall,” Seattle Pacific University said in a statement following the shooting. The lockdown was lifted at 17:00 local time, according to reports.
Reports of a second suspect turned out to be incorrect, according to a source briefed on the investigation, as a "second person tried to take gun away from shooter, which caused confusion" with the number of suspects, KIRO tweeted.
“I was in physics and people heard a loud bang – we thought it was a science experiment. We heard crying and yelling outside our door. We walked out and there were blood stains all over the carpet," SPU student Jordan Heff told the Seattle Times.
Photo: Seattle Pacific University students led out of crime scene after #SPUShooting: http://t.co/hy7G5HgLfZpic.twitter.com/QF83mVqkL6
— The Seattle Times (@seattletimes) June 6, 2014
Photo from Air 4 above the scene at @SeattlePacific: pic.twitter.com/UGQWg8PFqj
— KOMO News (@komonews) June 5, 2014
As of 16:40 local time, Seattle SWAT officers are still clearing campus buildings, according to Seattle police.
Police have sealed off the area around a white pickup truck near the scene of the shooting, according to KOMO News.
— Jon Humbert (@jonhumbert) June 5, 2014
Medics transporting 4 gunshot victims from #spushooting to HMC with wounds varying from minor to life threatening
— Seattle Fire Dept (@SeattleFire) June 5, 2014
Seattle Pacific University, located in the city's Queen Anne neighborhood, is a private, Christian university with a total enrollment of about 4,000 students.
Friday is the final day of classes at the university. SPU President Daniel Martin said there has yet to be a decision about finals, due to occur next week.
— Maria Guerrero (@KIRO7Maria) June 5, 2014
