Good lord: 18 people shot at Northern Illinois University? Update: At least one dead; Update: Five Six dead
posted at 5:15 pm on February 14, 2008 by Allahpundit
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Sounds like another VTech. Not much information yet. Standby.
Update: The university webpage says the scene is secure but no word on victims.
Update: VTech redux: It happened inside a lecture hall and the gunman’s suspected dead by suicide.
Update: Like I say, VTech redux: “A viewer who e-mailed CBS 2 said that her brother was in the lecture hall where the shooting happened. ‘He says that the gunmen was a white male dressed in all black. He kicked the door in and opened fire. My brother dove under the desk, and popped his head up to see the gunmen was reloading. He grabbed his girlfriend’s hand and ran to the library where they been in lockdown since.’”
Update: Another student says it was a shotgun. I’m skeptical.
Update: CNN has backed off the number 18 but it’s in the ballpark of 15, and three or four of them have head wounds.
Update: A pistol and a shotgun:
Sophomore Geoff Alberti of Geneva told his parents he was in geology class when the gunman, carrying both a piston and a shotgun, entered the auditorium-style classroom through an emergency exit. The shooter did not say anything before opening fire on the class, he told his parents.
“He said at least 20 rounds were fired,” said his mother, Marilyn.
Update: The gunman’s dead and at least one other person.
Update: Oddly, the hospital is keeping a running tally on its website of how many victims have arrived. 13 and counting.
Update: “Calmly”:
The man entered the room from the back, behind the professor, and began shooting without saying a word, Sundstrom said, firing in the general direction of the students. He emptied his clip of ammunition and calmly reloaded before resuming firing.
Update: An odd detail:
Student Edward Robinson told WLS that the gunman appeared to target students in one part of the lecture hall.
”It was almost like he knew who he wanted to shoot,” Robinson said. ”He knew who and where he wanted to be firing at.”
Someone suggested in the comments that there might be a Valentine’s Day connection here. Maybe he was aiming for someone in particular?
Update: 17 victims at the hospital, three of them critical.
Update: The earlier report of one killed has been walked back. Keep hope alive.
Update: Awful. Five dead, says the Tribune.
Update: Six dead now.
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:(
Chakra Hammer on February 14, 2008 at 5:16 PM
Hug the children tonight my friends - and say a prayer for those touched by this horror.
jake-the-goose on February 14, 2008 at 5:18 PM
My goodness. Terrible.
MikeZero on February 14, 2008 at 5:18 PM
Very sad. No need to repeat the arguement about allowing students to defend themselves.
Tony737 on February 14, 2008 at 5:18 PM
Fox News Say Gunman is dead, not sure if there is a second shooter.
Need to make sure..
Chakra Hammer on February 14, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Not good…. Not good at all!
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Damn it.
Dash on February 14, 2008 at 5:20 PM
On Foxnews.com
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 5:20 PM
Dear God…
Might have something to do with Valentine’s Day me thinks.
*prayers*
JetBoy on February 14, 2008 at 5:21 PM
God help us.
jgapinoy on February 14, 2008 at 5:22 PM
Oh man.
Deety on February 14, 2008 at 5:22 PM
Saying a prayer for the parents.
Les in NC on February 14, 2008 at 5:23 PM
wonder how a certian Senator from Illinois will respond to this.
horrible.
jp on February 14, 2008 at 5:25 PM
I didn’t even think of that. The holiday or some “tribute” to the prohibition era massacre, either one.
Those poor kids.
Tanya on February 14, 2008 at 5:26 PM
Praying for the families and friends of the victims as well as the survivors and their families.
Guest1.1 on February 14, 2008 at 5:26 PM
Why the skepticism over whether it was a shotgun or not?
Hollowpoint on February 14, 2008 at 5:29 PM
Why would you be skeptical? I’ve heard it was a shotgun and a pistol on the news. Most of those killed in Columbine were killed under the library’s desks point blank with a shotgun. Cho Seung-Hui used two basic pistols to kill thirty.
doubleplusundead on February 14, 2008 at 5:31 PM
Sounds like its time to start organizing self defense classes at high school and university level.
rockhauler on February 14, 2008 at 5:31 PM
How many kids from IL (suburbia) have seen a shot gun compared to a AK?
Doesn’t matter… it is all very sad.
Prayers out to IL, even if it is a liberal State.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 5:31 PM
Condolences to all families and friends involved.
Once again, the results of a “gun-free” zone.
MadisonConservative on February 14, 2008 at 5:31 PM
This has got to stop. WTF?
Zetterson on February 14, 2008 at 5:32 PM
Horrible.
EnochCain on February 14, 2008 at 5:32 PM
Saying a prayer for all the families and everyone affected. What horrible news!
Torch on February 14, 2008 at 5:34 PM
unbelievable, not again…
Kini on February 14, 2008 at 5:35 PM
I think it’s a bit early to try to analize the situation before the facts are in. I will just say a prayer for all the families. I have a daughter of my own I hope I will be able to send to college in a few years and things like this scare the dickens (edited for content) out of me.
Les in NC on February 14, 2008 at 5:36 PM
And if every kid in that auditorium had started throwing books, backpacks, full cans of soda, water bottles, etc. at the guy, hell, even if they each had a couple of good sized rocks in their pockets … they could have rushed the guy and put an end to it with fewer than 15 dead.
But it is easier to hide, I suppose. It’s what we teach them these days.
crosspatch on February 14, 2008 at 5:37 PM
http://www.niu.edu/alert/campus_alert.shtml
This is so sad. Man this just pisses me off.
Zetterson on February 14, 2008 at 5:37 PM
This is tragic. My prayers to all the victims and their loved ones.
conservativejack on February 14, 2008 at 5:37 PM
Its also easier to sit back in the comfort of your own home and say what others in a life threatening situation should have done.
EnochCain on February 14, 2008 at 5:38 PM
I live in Chicago, the local news is all over it. Everyone is reporting wildly different accounts but the local hospital was told to expect up to 15 trauma patients.
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 5:38 PM
Please stop blaming them. Heroes have always been unique. Few people are prepared for the completely unexpected.
Zetterson on February 14, 2008 at 5:39 PM
How did he get in through the emergency exit? Aren’t they normally locked on the outside? Did he have the door propped open or obtain the key to it in advance?
Numenorean on February 14, 2008 at 5:41 PM
My son’s best friend goes to NIU. He’s trying to call her right now.
I hate gun free zones…
alilianstrom on February 14, 2008 at 5:42 PM
a couple rocks? Just because it was a geology class doesn’t mean anything.
People do some seriously wrong things due to anger, emotions and the simple fact they are mental.
I want to see who the person is that did this. Then why don’t you do the parents a favor, and offer them a prayer! They will need it now more then ever.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 5:42 PM
It’s no surprise the media is reporting innuendo and rumors….just like they did in New Orleans. They disgust me.
Thoughts to all the families.
Will Obama blame Bush at the memorial (and jump the shark)? He’s sure to be there.
SouthernGent on February 14, 2008 at 5:42 PM
Hey, at least we’re safe from terrorist. That’s most important.
TOPV on February 14, 2008 at 5:42 PM
AP — Why are you skeptical it was a shotgun?
Note the Illinois does not allow concealed carry at all, nevermind on school property. I think we need a new expression in place of “like shooting fish in a barrel”: like shooting students in a classroom where the State has disarmed them.
Mark Jaquith on February 14, 2008 at 5:42 PM
Casualty reports are almost always way off. When we had a shooting at our high school, I was told later by a friend that an early report on local radio said six dead, in reality, there was only one injury.
doubleplusundead on February 14, 2008 at 5:43 PM
The MSM is all over the map in their reporting. The idiots at channel 5 have a copy of an NIU emergency manual and are merely reciting lines from it. Channel 2 is in stop drop and roll mode. Channel 7 has been talking to students, one student says there were a total of 5 wounded that he saw personally…
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 5:46 PM
Twelve gauge would probably blow through a lock pretty handily, still, most schools are completely disarmed, so even if he went through the front door, he probably wouldn’t face any opposition.
doubleplusundead on February 14, 2008 at 5:47 PM
Depending on what sort of ammo was used, a shotgun at long range would tend to wound, not kill. A shotgun used against personnel is a close-range weapon.
piraticalbob on February 14, 2008 at 5:50 PM
Who carries rocks in their pockets? And who tries to use one against a gunman? Aside from yourself, of course.
One armed student would’ve been a lot more effective than 15 students trying to throw books while being shot at.
Hollowpoint on February 14, 2008 at 5:51 PM
this is a shame :(
no doubt he was a ‘troubled student’ with a ‘dark, silent past’ and his parents had ‘no idea’. if his student counselor invokes the ’student’s right to privacy’ privledge on this one….
damn sad no matter what…
Biffstir on February 14, 2008 at 5:51 PM
If its anything like the University I work at, the fire exists in the big lecture halls double as exit doors, and most get propped open so late arrivals can get in.
Wyrd on February 14, 2008 at 5:52 PM
I’ll tell you, one of the most surreal things during our school shooting is that the place we were evacuated to had TVs on, and we were watching ourselves being evacuated from the school on CNN from the vantage of a chopper camera.
doubleplusundead on February 14, 2008 at 5:52 PM
Another shooting in a “gun free zone”. Anybody get the feeling they don’t work?
Afterimage on February 14, 2008 at 5:54 PM
Hollowpoint,
I would throw a rock, desk, the knife in my back pocket, a liberal arts major anythign I could get my hands on. When the choice is to die cowering, or die by fighting then fighting is the only answer.
But you are 100% right. One armed student (who was a good shot and knew what he was doing) would have ended the problem with minimal loss of life
Wyrd on February 14, 2008 at 5:55 PM
Blue State Blues
Drtuddle on February 14, 2008 at 5:55 PM
Now its 4 students are being airlifted to a regional trauma center as the local hospital isnt equipped to handle. Medical Emergency helicopters have been sent from Chicago to airlift more victims.
There is no word on any dead at the scene.
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 5:56 PM
Odd feeling isn’t it… almost surreal.
I remember the feeling of watching the Mardi Gras Riots in Seattle.. and watching them on National News and being in the crowds while it was going on.
I also remember being in the middle of them trying to get away and not have something bad happen. I was lucky.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 5:56 PM
Let’s see… That’s two shootings in two days involving two schools with two states with the stickiest gun control laws. How can this be??? Don’t these people know these are gun free areas?
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 5:58 PM
Now it’s one dead (gunman or victim?) and up to 12 wounded.
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 6:01 PM
Hollowpoint, Remember we’ve been taught since first grade not to fight in school. “It takes two to tangle”, “Two wronges don’t make it right” “Don’t get involved” blah, blah, blah.
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 6:04 PM
I was never taught that in school. I remember my principal telling me that if someone put their hands on me then I had to do what I had to do.
EnochCain on February 14, 2008 at 6:05 PM
That’s never stopped anymore.
Jim Treacher on February 14, 2008 at 6:06 PM
Rather, anyone…
Jim Treacher on February 14, 2008 at 6:06 PM
OK,
The Dekalb hospital states that there were a total of 17 victims, 3 in criticial, 8 in stable, and the rest are “walking wounded.
The only death appears to be the gunman?
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 6:07 PM
Can we wait for the blood to dry before we politicize this?
Darth Executor on February 14, 2008 at 6:08 PM
EnochCain, LOL, how old are, 100? Everyone when I was a kid got suspended for fighting, no matter who started it. And it’s the same today, thirty years later.
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 6:08 PM
Good God!
I live about an hour from NIU. My husband and two of my 3 bros-in laws are NIU alumni.
The citizens of this Socialist Gulag that is illionis need to flockin’ WAKE UP!
The draconian gun laws here kill!
annoyinglittletwerp on February 14, 2008 at 6:08 PM
Illinois has the some of the strictest gun laws in the country. It’s practically a gun free state. I guess the shooter wasn’t aware of that. Otherwise this couldn’t have happened.
America1st on February 14, 2008 at 6:08 PM
HAY GUISE!!!!! HAS NE1 SED THAT ILLINOIS ABUSIVE GUN LAWS DONT WERK????
doubleplusundead on February 14, 2008 at 6:09 PM
lol, I am 28 actually. I guess maybe I got lucky with the people who were running the school I attended.
EnochCain on February 14, 2008 at 6:10 PM
Sickening, horrible news…
RushBaby on February 14, 2008 at 6:11 PM
I’d like to know where you grew up, maybe I should more.
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 6:12 PM
As long as this nation has victim disarmament zones, the massacres will continue.
Kristopher on February 14, 2008 at 6:12 PM
I grew up in Alabama and the only thing I like about the state is the college football. lol
EnochCain on February 14, 2008 at 6:13 PM
In a matter of days we will see the usual accusations of “failure to connect the dots”… And most of the accusers will be those who were instrumental in making sure that laws, regulations and policies prevented the connection of said dots.
We saw it after the VaTech shootings. And 9/11.
darkpixel on February 14, 2008 at 6:24 PM
Good call. The People’s Republic of Illinois doesn’t allow guns. I wonder what could possibly have gone wrong?
Jaibones on February 14, 2008 at 6:26 PM
I think the further north one goes the more Liberal the education system is.
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 6:27 PM
Yeah, but under the circumstances I can’t blame anyone for excersizing some self-preservation rather than make a suicidal rush at a gunman armed only with a textbook. Few weapons are deadlier at short range than a shotgun.
Hollowpoint on February 14, 2008 at 6:28 PM
“Calmly” says it all…..
You can calmly massacre and reload when you know no one is going to be able fire back at you.
That word describes the situation perfectly.
mikkins on February 14, 2008 at 6:36 PM
Oh I’m sure it happened so fast no one had a chance to do anything but duck and dive for cover. But it would be nice to be able to defend ones self without breaking any laws or rules. Gun free zones are nothing more than free fire zones for the Bad Guys and Nut cases.
KCtheKat on February 14, 2008 at 6:36 PM
Allah, great… so a love gone wrong… Shoot the World senerio.
This is sad.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 6:44 PM
Brace yourselves to hear lots more about this:
http://thelineishere.org/?p=94
Credit where it’s due, as Obama didn’t come up with this tripe in response to this shooting.
funky chicken on February 14, 2008 at 6:47 PM
As long as each event is treated as a giant media spectacle they will continue. I’m sure there are a few prospective shooters following every word of this latest coverage, fondling their .357s, and planning on how they will do it differently when it comes time for their 15 minutes of fame.
a capella on February 14, 2008 at 6:51 PM
These shootings are so unsettling. The way our society has turned everything into being someone else’s fault is stupid.
A few decades back, there was just good or evil. You can’t get into the head of a madman and try to figure out his thinking and what you could’ve done to cause it or change it. All you can do is hope you’re not around when he goes nuts, or that you have protection if you are.
I’m sure there will be plenty of hand wringing in the msm. Bottom line, the turd was evil and I hope he met a deserving fate for his selfishness.
NTWR on February 14, 2008 at 6:53 PM
Although IL should be condemned for its anti-gun stance, it is noteworthy that there aren’t many states that allow you to carry in a school. In Florida, you aren’t allowed to carry: in schools, in churches, and at professional sporting events (there are other restrictions, but they’re obvious and acceptable ones like police stations, government buildings, voting precincts, etc).
In the wake of multiple church shootings and school shootings, these restrictions bear rethinking (in every state that imposes them). They’re not stopping gun crimes, and they’re making for easy victims.
Mark Jaquith on February 14, 2008 at 6:59 PM
Foxnew.com
I wonder if this guy picked Valentines day due to delivery drivers dropping off “Favors” for Students and Teachers, knowing he wouldn’t be as noticed until it was the end.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 6:59 PM
more security.
Chakra Hammer on February 14, 2008 at 7:02 PM
Ditto Aferimage, this is precisely why we NEED gun-free zones. Had this college been a gun free zone this would never, ever have happened.
ColdBore76 on February 14, 2008 at 7:07 PM
a capella and NTWR, HEAR HEAR!
funky chicken on February 14, 2008 at 7:08 PM
I don’t think you got what they were saying….
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 7:10 PM
OK, is this guy and site credible?
Cliff Kincaid is the Editor of Accuracy in Media.
http://www.nationalledger.com/artman/publish/article_272618845.shtml
funky chicken on February 14, 2008 at 7:12 PM
5 Dead…..
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 7:17 PM
UPDATE: There are five fatalities in the shooting at NIU, authorities said.
upinak on February 14, 2008 at 7:18 PM
What do those two posts have to do with the subject of this thread?
Nichevo on February 14, 2008 at 7:23 PM
Nichevo, I’m just waiting for the media to tell us that we need more gun control, and that Obama has his very own bill that will provide that, along with “curing” poverty.
And if that bill actually makes it into law, it will be a kind of Valentine’s Day massacre too.
funky chicken on February 14, 2008 at 7:27 PM
May God rest their Souls and comfort their families.
Zorro on February 14, 2008 at 8:01 PM
Valentines day is normally a happy occasion,
but this is a sad day for students at Northern
ILLinois University! My prayers are with the families.
canopfor on February 14, 2008 at 8:10 PM
Here’s a tip: wait. This is a horror. These are real people. Leave the political cut-n-paste until politics becomes the issue.
Nichevo on February 14, 2008 at 8:11 PM
Standby for a spate of recriminations including the Democrat Presidential candidates McCain, Obama, and Clinton all demanding abridgement of the 2nd Amendment.
Thoughts and prayers to the victims, families, and community of Northern Illinois University.
highhopes on February 14, 2008 at 8:16 PM
Local Chicago news says 5 dead including the gunman, who is not an NIU student. It was inferred that the gunman may have attended NIU previously but was currently enrolled elsewhere.
It is still not known if the gunman knew any of the students in the hall.
3 guns were said to have been recovered.
southsideironworks on February 14, 2008 at 8:17 PM
There seems to be a real up-tick in mass shootings since the Supreme Court decided to hear DC v. Heller. I’m beginning to think that these shooters may be anti-gun nuts martyring themselves to in an attempt to throw the Court’s decision.
AntonK on February 14, 2008 at 8:31 PM
I assume that this was another gun free zone? Somehow, I doubt that the fact these people probably weren’t able to defend themselves will be brought up much in the MSM.
Physics Geek on February 14, 2008 at 8:34 PM
A society obviously has much better uses for young men who have an aggressive disposition. It seems it would have been better, had some concerned adult recognized this young man’s potential when he was still a boy and conveyed to him a message something like this: “Look, I can see it in your eyes and the way you act, and I can hear it in your voice. You know that there are people who just need to be killed, don’t you? That’s fine–really!–but all of us need help figuring out when somebody really needs to be killed and when we’re just having a bad week. If you control yourself and get the right discipline and training, you can have a really satisfying career. But you’ve got to commit yourself, right now, always to kill in socially responsible ways, or you’ll destroy your potential. Do you understand?”
I’m sure someone can figure out a better way to get those thoughts across. I just hate to see angry young men (and their victims) suffer needlessly because their talents have been widely disparaged and haven’t been properly directed. And I hate to see good killers go to waste.
Kralizec on February 14, 2008 at 8:36 PM
My sympathy to the victims and their families of this horrible tragedy.
Yakko77 on February 14, 2008 at 8:38 PM
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