Omaha Mall Massacre: At Least Nine Dead

[Neorave]

Taken from WOWT.com (http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/12163196.html)

An afternoon of holiday shopping was shattered by gunfire at Westroads Mall Wednesday afternoon. Authorities say Robert Hawkins, armed with a rifle, killed nine people and injured five others, two critically, before shooting himself to death.

Creighton University Medical Center confirms two fatalities there; one man and one woman. Another person is in critical condition.

Three victims were taken to the Nebraska Medical Center, one in critical condition with a chest wound. One person has an arm wound and the third was being treated for cuts to the face.

Shortly after 4 p.m. Omaha Police Sergeant Teresa Negron said that 14 people were shot; nine had died, including the gunman and five were injured.

Names of those invovled were not initially released.

Police don't believe that anyone other than the gunman who killed himself was involved.

Omaha Police Sergeant Teresa Negron said, "As far as we know, there is no other shooter inside the mall."

Police recovered a rifle believed to have been used by the killer.

Channel 6 News has confirmed that 19-year-old Robert Hawkins left a suicide note Wednesday afternoon stating, "I'm going out in style."

The woman who owns the Bellevue home where Hawkins was living says Hawkins had just lost his job.

The mall was locked down as the initial shooting report came out but several people got out of the building shortly after the gunfire and many others followed later.

Law enforcement officers converged on the scene. The police helicopter circled overhead. Members of the Emergency Response Unit were on the scene with guns drawn.

Mickey Vickory, an employee of Von Maur, said she heard shots at about 1:50 p.m. and someone shouted that someone had a gun.

"It was 10 or 12 shots," she said. "We were praying. Every last one of us was praying."

She and her co-workers and customers went into a back closet behind the wrapping room to hide, then came out about a half hour later when police shouted to come out with their hands up.

As they came out and were being taken by police to another part of the mall for safety, they saw the victims.

"We saw the bodies and we saw the blood," she said.

Teresa, an employee of JC Penney, says she got on a two-way radio and said, "If anyone can hear me, there's a man in the mall with a gun and he's shooting people."

Another witness told us she heard approximately 12 gunshots. Other witnesses told us they heard at least that many.

"Connie", a Westroads shopper we spoke with on the phone, tells us she heard the shots on the third floor of the mall. She said she hid and waited until the gunfire stopped and then crawled out of the building.

Two people were taken into custody near a bus stop but it was not clear if those men were connected to the shootings.

A witness tells us that the shooter pointed a gun over a third-floor railing in the mall and opened fire. That witness says one person was shot in the head.

Two busloads on witness were gathered together as authorities tried to figure out what happened.

Eric, the father of a woman who is a security guard at the mall, got word around 3 p.m. that his daughter was not injured in the incident. She has been on the job for about a year and told her parents she saw one of the victims get shot.

"She called my wife. She was pretty upset," Eric told us.

Witness Chuck Wright says, "I heard this bang, bang, bang. And immediately I just froze."

He says, "As I backed off, I heard bang, bang, again."

Wright says he heard a total of 12 to 15 shots fired.

"It was just panic. Nobody knew what was going on," Wright said.

Wright told us the shootings appeared to be random.

Those who escaped the shooting had to stay at the scene as police needed their help to piece together all the details. "We heard probably 15 to 20 gunshots, sounded like a huge banging noise," says Brianne Pinkerton.

“Because I wasn't sure if it was gunshots. I thought if it was, we should get back into the back and then some more customers, a manger and other employees came back. We stayed back there. Unfortunately, the door didn't have a lock on it. So we pushed a ladder against the door."

And there were many others who were in lockdown and then left in a hurry. "I hear seven or eight shots and they said what is that and everyone said head for cover and I looked back and one of the guys was shot,” says Dave Cornwell, a Von Maur employee.

"We went to the corners of the building areas that seemed safe, dressing rooms and things like that."

Outside many who experienced the horror gathered waiting to be interviewed by police, all while supporting each other sharing an entire spectrum of human emotion.

"Scared, scared and shake, some people cry,” said shopper Andres Argyrakis. Images that Cornwell and likely everyone involved, will never forget. "Just sad, I think someone got shot in our building that worked for us."

Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey and Police Chief Thomas Warren were both out of town at the time of the shootings. Both are returning to the city.

Senator Ben Nelson issued a statement Wednesday evening saying, "Today the city of Omaha and the state of Nebraska have endured a terrible tragedy. Though some of our neighbors have suffered devastating losses today, I know that they can count on the support of the Omaha community at this time. Diane and I send our thoughts and prayers out to the families and friends of the victims of today's terrible violence."

The shootings happened about an hour after President Bush left town.

First off, I'm ok. I wasn't in Omaha at the time of the shooting (I'm still in Seward, NE finishing up college stuff). But, this is definitely a tragic event, not just the fact that 8 people died, but the fact that this whole event just seems to be getting more bizzare and dark. It's shocking to hear some of the findings in the investigation into this event.

[browneyedgirl]

I just read about this tragedy on the BBC page&I was so shocked! Kids cannot go to school without some dread about shootings&now, people cannot shop in peace! Whats next? Church shootings? This is so terrible. These shoppers were probably buying presents&planning for XMas, and now some are dead, and many are injured.
Of course there is the question of why that man shot all these inocent people. Its not excuseable. He was evidently mentally ill, or was he just taking his rage out on these shoppers? Actually, it does not really matter. The damage is done.
I feel so sorry for the families of the dead&wounded. I also feel sorry for the people who simply witnessed this tragedy.
This incident also makes one think about life on a whole new level. I think many of us will never be totally at ease going into a Mall for a very long time! A completely relaxing activity such as shopping will make us have to be totally aware of our surroundings. Fear. Maybe that was partly the shooters goal. Not just to kill, but to shake everyone up with the enormity of his malicious act.

[Neorave]

I think his main intention was to be famous, hence his suicide not "I'm going out with style."

One thing I will say about the shooter was that he did get fired from his job at McDonalds the same day, and his girlfriend dumped him 2 weeks ago, so I think this was some stupid emo kid that took out his despression on other people and himself. It is quite sad.

I know I probably shouldn't hold a grudge against the guy, but I hope he feels the same pain in hell that he gave to the victims...10 times over.

[NeonVomit]

Ok dude I'm glad to hear you're ok, I was worried about you. All your friends&family alright?

Terrible tragedy. Someone snapped and took it out on other people.

Was this guy crazy? Did he suffer from mental difficulties?

We must wait and see what the investigation brings up.

[browneyedgirl]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22168660

We have hit the bottom of the barrel---not much lower to go. When people cannot be secure/safe in a church, then its a very sad thing. Unforgivable.

[stratoplayer]

We are in the pit and we keep digging, and people wonder why I have no faith in mankind...

[NeonVomit]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22168660

We have hit the bottom of the barrel---not much lower to go. When people cannot be secure/safe in a church, then its a very sad thing. Unforgivable.

Well, that sort of thing happens in Africa daily. People in church/mosque being gunned down by extremists of the other faith. Not trying to trivialise this or anything, but church shootings have happened before. Basically put, apparently noone is safe anywhere.

I am willing to bet that both of those people will be discovered to have had a history mental issues.

How someone who is not seen as mentally sound can be allowed access to firearms will forever elude me. We saw it when Dimebag, the two roadies and fan were murdered just a year ago, we saw it when the VTech massacre happened. We even saw it in Finland.

I am not saying people should have their guns taken away. I am saying that certain people should not be allowed to possess them.

[Carcass]

How someone who is not seen as mentally sound can be allowed access to firearms will forever elude me. We saw it when Dimebag, the two roadies and fan were murdered just a year ago, we saw it when the VTech massacre happened. We even saw it in Finland.

I am not saying people should have their guns taken away. I am saying that certain people should not be allowed to possess them.

The problem is that how can the authorities effectively and with sound funds asses peoples' mental health if their families and friends can't? It would cost an awful lot to test the mental health of each and every applicant, at least in Finland and US.

[browneyedgirl]

Also, you have to take into account the large amount of firearms bought&sold on the black market, between friends, and just traded, and dealt among people behind the scenes. Also, there is the stolen weapons market, too.
If a person is crazy, or angry enough to seriously want to do harm, they can find a gun easily, trust me. That is what makes the situation nigh impossible to stop totally.

[Carcass]

I partly agree with you. Few years back there was one guy in Finland who blew himself up in a shopping mall. School shootings are sexier, so I guess you haven't heard of this one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myyrmanni_bombing

Stolen weapons market in Finland is not a big issue, but there are other ways of killing people than just gunning the down. I think somebody in Japan went crazy and stabbed people left and right. But still, allowing people to have automatic weapons strikes me as insanity, there is absolutely no use for them. Except if you want to kill loads of people, that is.

Gun control is not the only thing that needs to be reassessed.

[Rantanen]

Well, yeah, there you go, this sort of thing happens and gets publicised. Thinking back to ancient times, people used to kill each other like cattle. I guess cultural evolution has made us more...human. Think about social altruism in times of crisis, as in humintarian aid during the Tsunami "tragedies" of late 2004, was it right? Or that sort of thing. So you don't expect a "normal person", say one in 10 people to kill a person in your neighbourhood 24 times in a day. I remember in one of the forum topics Timo Tolkki thought that I may be really sick. I don't think I could ever kill anyone. I'm sounding wary and vague, sorry, lacking sleep. Plenty of sleep. My stress levels are moderate to high. But I have a remedy in the medicine chest, so I'm not too worried. About my own health at the moment. God, I really should go to bed now. Before I become really sick.

[Carcass]

I'm not sure if I'm following your train of thought. But yeah, in one sense these things are nothing new. I believe the legal term is 'extended suicide', these cases are nothing new in Finland. People have several times killed their kids before blowing their own heads off.

[stratoplayer]

I'm not sure if I'm following your train of thought. But yeah, in one sense these things are nothing new. I believe the legal term is 'extended suicide', these cases are nothing new in Finland. People have several times killed their kids before blowing their own heads off.

Goebbles... Goering too I think. And pretty much any suicide bomber can be labeled and "extended suicide"

[Rantanen]

I am personally a little bit fascinated with the MIND of a person who is really losing a grip on his/her mind. It's not a happy thing to think about, a parent who kills their kids and then kills themselves. Swat the thought, if it makes you feel frightened, and move on the magic shop. I'm quite interested in psychology and psychiatry, but I don't drool over books about serial killers or anything. But that's very sad, the crap that happens in one's mind when "they" snap. The frightening thing is that these sad things are reality, and it really can happen just about everywhere. Be careful out there, whereever you are...

[Carcass]

I'm not sure if I'm following your train of thought. But yeah, in one sense these things are nothing new. I believe the legal term is 'extended suicide', these cases are nothing new in Finland. People have several times killed their kids before blowing their own heads off.

Goebbles... Goering too I think. And pretty much any suicide bomber can be labeled and "extended suicide"

Yeah, of course. But I was thinking about Finland.

(Göring killed himself in Spandau Prison, after being sentenced to death.)

[browneyedgirl]

>venting<
you know what really irks me? When there is talk of restricting guns, or making them hard to get, these NRA gun fanatics will start whining like babies faced with their toys taken away,"they're trying to take our guns away, they're trying to take our guns away." cry cry cry! Like that would be a bad thing if the guns were taken away! Then, they always say "The first thing Hitler did was ban guns." Or, "I want to be able to hunt when I want to." Sheesh!
>venting off<

I always liked the Tarzan show when Tarzan would grab the hunter's guns&smash the guns against a tree. I can picture it now: Tarzan gets civilized. Tarzan gets educated. Tarzan gets elected to Senate. Tarzan bans guns.

Shit, some of these redneck gun fanatics would give up their wives before they'd turn in their guns. It's THAT bad, the gun love in some people. And I imagine the gun love is prevalent in the gangsta ghetto element areas, too.
So, now you can understand why this type of sick nonsense is going to be nigh hard to stop completely. Until the mindset is changed, there is no hope totally for a solution.

[Mormegil]

>venting<
you know what really irks me? When there is talk of restricting guns, or making them hard to get, these NRA gun fanatics will start whining like babies faced with their toys taken away,"they're trying to take our guns away, they're trying to take our guns away." cry cry cry! Like that would be a bad thing if the guns were taken away! Then, they always say "The first thing Hitler did was ban guns." Or, "I want to be able to hunt when I want to." Sheesh!
>venting off<

I would be pretty fucking pissed-off if someone wanted to ban guitars and I had to give mine away. Hunting is their hobby, of course they are resisting banning guns.

[stratoplayer]

>venting<
you know what really irks me? When there is talk of restricting guns, or making them hard to get, these NRA gun fanatics will start whining like babies faced with their toys taken away,"they're trying to take our guns away, they're trying to take our guns away." cry cry cry! Like that would be a bad thing if the guns were taken away! Then, they always say "The first thing Hitler did was ban guns." Or, "I want to be able to hunt when I want to." Sheesh!
>venting off<

I would be pretty fucking pissed-off if someone wanted to ban guitars and I had to give mine away. Hunting is their hobby, of course they are resisting banning guns.

Yes but nobody killed their friend when a guitar was strung off-tune :p

[browneyedgirl]

6 Las Vegas students shot

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22207840/

They were getting off a school bus.
Jesus, if I had kids going to school, I'd seriously consider homeschooling them.
This is getting really bad.

[NeonVomit]

Yes but nobody killed their friend when a guitar was strung off-tune :p

I've heard some bands that nearly made me want to kill myself though.

Joking aside, something has to be done. Sure, USA has the highest per-capita gun ownership rate in the world, but in other countries where there are lots of guns and are at peace (Finland, Cyprus, Swizerland) gun crimes are very rare.

It's not a matter of guns themselves, it's a matter of attitude and regulation.

And personally, I think these latest cases show the need for some more guidelines to be laid down.

[Just a Vampire]

it is me or really the young outcasts think they can be famous by killing others and themselves?

I think that this kids do that because they could have it all but love and real support from their families. the most of the parents nowadays center only in getting money ('cause almost no one can live without it-including me, i needed to get food hehe-) and let the kids alone. so, they're usually bullied, no one cares and then start to develop weird ideas.
Im not saying that all the kids in this conditions are at risk of starting a massacre, but I guess it could play a major role on it.

anyway, my two cents

[browneyedgirl]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22258394

Not a massacre, but the safety of the Dorms&living quarters are being questioned. Obviously, security is lacking.

It used to be somewhat safer to be a teen---back in the old days of the 70a&80s. I'm not being sarcastic. Today's youths are being faced with so much danger, right&left these days. No, its not a war zone or anything like that, but its scarier than it used to be. You cannot argue with that!

[browneyedgirl]

it is me or really the young outcasts think they can be famous by killing others and themselves?

I think that this kids do that because they could have it all but love and real support from their families. the most of the parents nowadays center only in getting money ('cause almost no one can live without it-including me, i needed to get food hehe-) and let the kids alone. so, they're usually bullied, no one cares and then start to develop weird ideas.
Im not saying that all the kids in this conditions are at risk of starting a massacre, but I guess it could play a major role on it.

anyway, my two cents

Well, the Hawkins guy in Omaha did not fit the profile. He had a ton of family&emotional probs, but he was not an outcast or bullied. He had lots of friends&the "popular, big-shot" kids did not mistreat him.
As for the Denver shooter, he was a Christian hater who despised Christianity so much he joined the OTO, a Pagan/Occult group originally founded by Aleister Crowley. But, both groups rejected him as a person, so he got even. If a police officer had not stopped him, he would've done alot more killing than he did, which was bad enough! Just try putting the "Indigo Child" label on this fruitcake if you want a reaction from decent people!!!!!