Active Shooter Incidence

When the media reports an act of mall violence, the image that comes to the viewer’s mind is that of a lone gunman running through the mall and firing weapons into the shoppers and staff. Law enforcement refers to this type of situation as Active Shooter Incidence (ASI). This is a scenario where the shooter has chosen the mall as a target zone, intends to commit their violent act within the confine of the mall, and are prepared to die either through suicide or death-by-cop. The term “Active Shooter Incidence” made it into the American vocabulary after the horrific Columbine High School massacre. On April 20, 1999, two teenagers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold carried out deadliest high school shooting on American soil using pistols, shotguns, rifles and homemade explosives. Their murder-suicide rampage left 15 dead, 24 injured, and a nation in shock . Even though the Columbine type of school shooting has became more numerous since, American history has less experience with an ASI in the mall on the same scale as Columbine.

On Memorial Day, 1972, Harvey McLeod hid between cars parked in the North Hills Mall parking lot and fired his .22 caliber rifle into mall patrons just as U.S. Senator B. Everett Jordan was campaigning inside the mall. After McLeod had killed three people and wounded eight, he turned his rifle on himself and died from the wound. At first, the police thought the killing was an attempt on Senator Jordan’s life but later determine Harvey McLeod’s act was random violence .

At 11am, March 27, 2009, at the Moreno Valley Mall near the University of California, Riverside, a man in a ski mask walked through the mall and shot four people with a pellet gun.  The shooter escaped through an emergency exit and was not immediately apprehended. Of the four people he shot, two were employees at a retail kiosk and two were customers. The gunman’s pellet bruised all four victims but none suffered serious injuries. The shooter remains at large even as of today.

Active Shooter Incidence

When the media reports an act of mall violence, the image that comes to the viewer’s mind is that of a lone gunman running through the mall and firing weapons into the shoppers and staff. Law enforcement refers to this type of situation as Active Shooter Incidence (ASI). This is a scenario where the shooter has chosen the mall as a target zone, intends to commit their violent act within the confine of the mall, and are prepared to die either through suicide or death-by-cop. The term “Active Shooter Incidence” made it into the American vocabulary after the horrific Columbine High School massacre. On April 20, 1999, two teenagers Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold carried out deadliest high school shooting on American soil using pistols, shotguns, rifles and homemade explosives. Their murder-suicide rampage left 15 dead, 24 injured, and a nation in shock . Even though the Columbine type of school shooting has became more numerous since, American history has less experience with an ASI in the mall on the same scale as Columbine.

On Memorial Day, 1972, Harvey McLeod hid between cars parked in the North Hills Mall parking lot and fired his .22 caliber rifle into mall patrons just as U.S. Senator B. Everett Jordan was campaigning inside the mall. After McLeod had killed three people and wounded eight, he turned his rifle on himself and died from the wound. At first, the police thought the killing was an attempt on Senator Jordan’s life but later determine Harvey McLeod’s act was random violence .

At 11am, March 27, 2009, at the Moreno Valley Mall near the University of California, Riverside, a man in a ski mask walked through the mall and shot four people with a pellet gun.  The shooter escaped through an emergency exit and was not immediately apprehended. Of the four people he shot, two were employees at a retail kiosk and two were customers. The gunman’s pellet bruised all four victims but none suffered serious injuries. The shooter remains at large even as of today.

Investigators created a profile of Robert Hawkins and found a stereotypical lone shooter. Robert Hawkins had a lifelong struggle with psychiatric problem ever since the age of six. He was sent to a mental institution for four years at the age of fourteen, during which time he was made a ward of the state of Omaha. He also had juvenile conviction for felony drug conviction, ticket for underage alcohol possession, and the investor found a history of marijuana usage. What triggered Robert Hawkins’s rampage appears to be losing his job at McDonald for reportedly stealing seventeen dollars, separation from his girlfriend two weeks prior to the shooting, and his upcoming court appearance for underage possession of alcohol.

(To Be Continued…)

The recently released action comedy movie, “Paul Blart: Mall Cop”, finds a happy ending among security and mall-based violence. In this family-friendly flick, mall security guard Paul Blart (Actor Kevin James) foils the robbery attempt of well-armed criminals with perseverance, familiarity with the terrain, and numerous comedic gags. In the end, Paul Blart restores peace to the mall, saves his daughter who was a hostage and the girl he likes. Unfortunately, unlike the movie, real life mall violence never has a happy ending.

Types of Mall Violence

Mall violence falls under two categories: violence at the mall and “active shooter incidence”. While the media reports both types under the same label of “mall shooting”, each one has distinct causes and characteristics.

Violence at the mall

Over the years, the retail mall has replaced Town Square as a place where people meet, work, and play. Many crimes that occur at the mall can easily occur at other place, and historically do, but because the mall is where people meet and where people work, that is where these violence episodes occurs.

November 28, 2005, a fight broke out on the premise of the Eastland Mall, Charlotte, North Carolina. The altercation started with fistfights but quickly escalated and ended with one of the man shot in the arm.

November 27, 2007, Joanna Gonzales (see photo on the left) was opening up the lingerie shop “Body Luxuries” at the Greenspoint Mall, Houston, Texas. During her solo store opening routine, Joanna’s boyfriend called on the telephone and threatened her. Taking his threat seriously, Joanna immediately alerted mall security of his threat and her location. Tragically, before the mall security was able to arrive at “Body Luxuries”, the boyfriend showed up, dragged Joanna into the store’s backroom where he shot her in the head, and then turned the gun on himself.

In addition to crimes such as fights, domestic disturbance, and workplace violence, gang-related incidents are a major contributor to this category of mall crimes. Since mall has become a place where gang-related criminal enterprise take place as well as the more traditional territorial scuffles occur, mall operators are increasing being exposed to more gang-style robberies and incidences.

On March 25, 2009, a man was shot outside the back of the Florin Mall in South Sacramento, California. The shooting was attributed to a drug deal gone bad.

April 26, 2008, 19-year-old Christian Argueta and another man walked out of the Cerro Grande restaurant at Springfield Mall, Washington, where they were attacked in the mall’s parking lot. The assailants were three members of a Latino gang known as MS-13, and they gunned down Christian Argueta, who was in a rival gang, “for the purpose of gaining entrance to and maintaining and increasing position in MS-13,” according to unsealed court document.

Aside from drug-deals and fights, mall is an attractive target for criminals intending on committing robbery. Since most malls are located by a major roadway or freeway, quick getaway is easy. The lack of armed security makes it a low-risk environment for the criminals since they are less likely to be interrupted by armed forces. Mall patrons exiting the mall with bags of purchased goods identify themselves as having valuable possession and possibly cash. In addition, since mall patrons do not associate mall the crimes, they are less alert and very easy to control.

On March 31, 2007, three young men shot two mall patrons and a mall security guard during a store robbery at the Greenbriar Mall, Atlanta, Georgia .

On February 2, 2008, The Lane Bryant store at Brookside Marketplace, Tinley Park, Illinois became a scene of violence. A few minutes after 10am, a man in a black winter coat walked into the store and announced it was a hold-up. He forced a total of six women into the backroom, where he bound them with duct tape and placed face down. Before he left the store, he shot all six women execution style. Only one survived. To this day, the killer remains at large.

(To Be continued…)