Here’s a look at rampage killings that have occurred in the United States since the 1940s. Includes incidents with four or more killed (not including the perpetrators). Not included are suicides, gang-related incidents or deaths resulting from domestic conflicts.
US Timeline (selected only):
Includes incidents with four or more killed (not including the perpetrators) on college campuses as well as other public places. For incidents in K-12 schools, see US School Violence Fast Facts. See also Deadliest Mass Shootings in US History Fast Facts.
2017
November 14, 2017 – Kevin Janson Neal, who is out on bail, shoots and kills four people in Rancho Tehama, California. Police then kill him. During the investigation, police find that Neal had killed his wife the previous night.
November 5, 2017 – A gunman opens fire on a small church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, killing 25 people and an unborn child and wounding 20 others. The shooter, identified by two law enforcement sources as Devin Patrick Kelley, is found dead after a brief chase, but it’s unclear if it was self-inflicted.
October 1, 2017 – At about 10:08 pm, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock of Mesquite, Nevada, rains gunfire on a crowd of 22,000 concertgoers in Las Vegas from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, killing 58 people and injuring almost 500. Witnesses say the gunshots last between 10 and 15 minutes. Officers breach Paddock’s hotel room to find him dead. Authorities believe Paddock killed himself and that he acted alone. It is the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.
June 5, 2017 – Five people are killed in a workplace shooting at an office complex in Orlando, Florida. The gunman, John Robert Neumann Jr., 45, had been fired in April and reportedly targeted former coworkers. He dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
March 22, 2017 – Four people, including a police officer, are killed in shootings at three locations in the Wausau area of northern Wisconsin. The suspect, Nengmy Vang, 45, is wounded exchanging fire with police and later dies of his injuries.
January 6, 2017 – A gunman opens fire in the baggage claim area of the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida. Five people are killed and six are injured. The suspect, Esteban Santiago, 26, had traveled from Alaska to Florida with a gun packed in his checked bag. Santiago is arrested and charged with an act of violence at an international airport resulting in death. A conviction could lead to the death penalty.
2016
September 23, 2016 – Five people die after a gunman opens fire at a Washington state mall in Burlington, an hour north of Seattle. Suspect Arcan Cetin, 20, is taken into custody after a nearly 24-hour manhunt. He later commits suicide in jail.
July 7-8, 2016 – Five police officers are killed when a sniper fires at them as they keep watch over a peaceful protest in downtown Dallas, Texas. Seven other officers and two civilians are wounded. After a lengthy standoff with police in a parking garage, a police bomb squad robot kills the gunman. The attacker is identified as Micah Xavier Johnson, 25, an Army veteran who’d served in Afghanistan.
June 12, 2016 – Omar Saddiqui Mateen, 29, opens fire inside Pulse, a gay nightclub, in Orlando, killing 49 people and wounding more than 50. After a standoff of about three hours, police crash into the building with an armored vehicle and kill Mateen.
March 8, 2016 – Four people are killed in Kansas City and a fifth is gunned down in Missouri. The shooting suspect, Pablo Antonio Serrano-Vitorino, 36, is charged with murder and will be eligible for the death penalty. He had been deported to Mexico in 2004 but returned to the United States illegally. Although Immigrations and Customs Enforcement received notice that Serrano-Vitorino was back, he was not apprehended on return due to a paperwork error.
February 20, 2016 – Six people are killed during a shooting rampage at three different sites in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The suspect is identified as Jason Brian Dalton, 45, an Uber driver who apparently picked up and dropped off passengers between shootings. Dalton is arrested without incident and reportedly tells police that the Uber app on his phone was controlling his mind. His attorney is planning to use an insanity defense.
2015
December 2, 2015 – Married couple Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 29, open fire during a holiday party at Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, killing 14 people. Farook and Malik are later gunned down by police.
October 1, 2015 – Christopher Sean Harper-Mercer, 26, shoots and kills nine people at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon. Six weapons are found at the college, where Harper-Mercer dies after a gun battle with police.
July 16, 2015 – Mohammad Abdulazeez, 24, opens fire at a naval reserve facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee, killing four US Marines and a Navy Specialist. Abdulazeez is shot and killed by police.
June 17, 2015 – Dylann Roof, 21, shoots and kills nine people inside the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, in Charleston, South Carolina. Roof is arrested the following day about 245 miles away in Shelby, North Carolina. He confesses and tells investigators he wanted to start a race war. Roof is convicted of murder and hate crimes in federal court and is sentenced to death. He would be the first person executed for committing federal hate crimes.
2014
May 23, 2014 – A college student, Elliott Rodger, 22, kills six people near the University of California, Santa Barbara campus. He later dies of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
2013
September 16, 2013 – Twelve people are killed at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington. The shooter, Aaron Alexis, 34, is also killed.
June 7, 2013 – In Santa Monica, California, five people are killed in a shooting rampage that begins at the gunman’s home and ends in the library of Santa Monica College. The suspect, John Zawahri, 23, armed with an assault rifle, is killed by police.
2012
August 5, 2012 – Six people are killed and four wounded when Wade Michael Page, 40, opens fire with a Springfield 9mm semi-automatic handgun at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Page died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
July 20, 2012 – Twelve people are killed and 70 injured in a shooting at a movie theater screening “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colorado. The suspect, James E. Holmes, 24, is taken into custody outside of the theater. Dressed head-to-toe in protective tactical gear, Holmes set off two explosive devices before opening fire. An AR-15 rifle, a shotgun and at least two .40-caliber handguns are recovered at the scene. Holmes is later convicted of murder and other charges. He receives one life sentence for each person killed, adding up to life plus 3,318 years.
April 2, 2012 – Seven people are killed and three others injured during a shooting at Oikos University in East Oakland, California. The suspect, One Goh, 43, walks into an Oikos University classroom, lines up students against a wall and shoots them with a .45 caliber handgun. Goh surrenders to police a short time later. In 2017, he pleads no contest to seven murder charges.
2011
October 12, 2011 – Scott Evans Dekraai, 41, opens fire at the Salon Meritage in Seal Beach, California, killing eight, including his ex-wife, and injuring one. He is armed with three guns — a 9 mm Springfield, a Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum, and a Heckler & Koch .45 — and wears body armor during the rampage. After a delay of several years due to allegations of prosecutorial misconduct, Dekraai is sentenced on September 22, 2017, to eight consecutive terms of life in prison without parole, plus an additional term of 232 years to life for attempted murder.
January 8, 2011 – Jared Lee Loughner, 22, kills six people and wounds 13 others during “Congress on Your Corner” event with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (D) at a strip mall in Tucson, Arizona. Giffords is shot in the head, but survives. Loughner pleads guilty to attempting to kill a member of Congress, two counts of first degree murder and two counts of attempted murder. In exchange for the guilty pleas, he is sentenced to life in prison rather than receiving the death penalty.
2010
August 3, 2010 – At a beverage distribution center in Manchester, Connecticut, Omar Thornton, 34, kills eight co-workers before turning the gun on himself. Thornton had been asked to resign for stealing and selling alcoholic beverages.
January 19, 2010 – Christopher Speight, 39, kills eight people at a house in Appomattox, Virginia. He surrenders to police at the scene the next morning. In February 2013, he is sentenced to five life terms plus 18 years.
2009
November 5, 2009 – Major Nidal Malik Hasan, 39, kills 13 people and injures 32 at Fort Hood in Texas. In 2013, a military jury convicts Hasan of 13 counts of murder and 32 counts of attempted murder. He is sentenced to death.
April 3, 2009 – In Binghamton, New York, Jiverly Wong, 41, guns down 13 people at an immigrant community center where he had taken an English class. Four others are wounded. After the rampage, he turns the gun on himself.
March 29, 2009 – In Carthage, North Carolina, Robert Stewart, 45, kills a nurse and seven elderly patients at a nursing home. He is convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.
March 10, 2009 – In Alabama, Michael McLendon, 28, kills 10 people and himself. The dead include his mother, grandparents, aunt and uncle.
2008
September 2, 2008 – In Skagit County, Washington, Isaac Zamora, 28, kills five people and a police officer during a two-hour rampage. Zamora is sentenced in November 2008 to a life term at the state mental hospital.
February 14, 2008 – At Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois, Steven Kazmierczak, 27, shoots and kills five people in a lecture hall before taking his own life.
February 7, 2008 – In Kirkwood, Missouri, Charles Lee Thornton, 50, shoots and kills five people at a city council meeting before he is fatally shot by police.
2007
December 9, 2007 – Matthew Murray, 24, shoots and kills four people during two attacks in Colorado Springs and Arvada, Colorado. In the first attack, he guns down two people at the Youth with a Mission religious complex after a Christmas banquet. Hours later, Murray kills two teen girls in a parking lot at the New Life Church. A security guard shoots Murray several times, but police rule his death a suicide.
December 5, 2007 – In Omaha, Nebraska, Robert Hawkins, 19, kills eight people at a mall before turning the gun on himself.
February 12, 2007 – In Salt Lake City, Sulejman Talovic, 18, kills five people at a mall and injures four more. He is then killed by police.
April 16, 2007 – At Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, Virginia, Seung-Hui Cho, 23, kills 32 people before committing suicide.
2006
May 21, 2006 – In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Anthony Bell, 25, guns down four people at a church. He later kills his wife. He is convicted of five counts of murder and sentenced to death.
March 25, 2006 – In Seattle, Kyle Huff, 28, leaves a house party and returns with a shotgun and handgun. He kills six people and wounds two others. When confronted by police, he kills himself.
January 30-31, 2006 – At a postal facility in Goleta, California, Jennifer San Marco, 44, opens fire, killing seven people before turning the gun on herself. Her neighbor is found shot to death the next day.
2005
March 12, 2005 – In Brookfield, Wisconsin, Terry Ratzmann, 44, kills seven people during a church group meeting at a Sheraton Hotel in Brookfield. He then kills himself.
March 11-12, 2005 – At an Atlanta courthouse, Brian Nichols, 33, kills three (a judge, court reporter, and deputy) and wounds one (a deputy). Nichols, who is being tried for rape, escapes, steals a car and guns down a fourth victim, a federal customs agent. Nichols is taken into custody after breaking into a woman’s home. He is convicted of four counts of murder and 50 other charges. Although he is eligible for the death penalty, the jury deadlocks on the decision and Nichols is sentenced to life in prison without parole.
2004
December 8, 2004 – In Columbus, Ohio, Nathan Gale, 25, storms the stage at a rock concert and kills Pantera guitarist “Dimedag” Darrell Abbott, as well as three concertgoers. Gale is then killed by a police officer.
2001
October 3, 2001 – In Manchester, Tennessee, Damir Igric, 29, attacks the driver of a Greyhound bus, cutting his throat. Igric and five passengers are killed in the bus crash.
2000
April 28, 2000 – Immigration lawyer, Richard Baumhammers, 34, kills five people during racially motivated attacks in suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is convicted and sentenced to death.
1990s
September 15, 1999 – In Fort Worth, Texas, Larry Gene Ashbrook, 47, bursts into the Wedgwood Baptist Church during a youth rally and kills seven people. He then takes his own life.
July 29, 1999 – In Atlanta, Mark Barton, 44, kills his wife and two children at his home. He then goes to an office complex and guns down nine additional people. He later kills himself.
June 3, 1999 – In Las Vegas, Zane Michael Floyd, 23, kills four people at an Albertsons grocery store. He pleads guilty and is sentenced to death.
December 7, 1993 – In Garden City, New York, Colin Ferguson, 35, shoots and kills six people on a commuter train. In March 1995, Ferguson is sentenced to life in prison.
December 2, 1993 – In Oxnard, California, Alan Winterbourne, 33, shoots and kills three people at an unemployment office. After a car chase, police kill Winterbourne, an unemployed computer engineer. A police officer is killed during the chase
July 1, 1993 – In San Francisco, Gian Luigi Ferri, 55, kills eight people in a law office and then kills himself.
November 8, 1992 – In Morro Bay, California, 43-year-old Lynwood Drake III kills six people before taking his own life.
October 16, 1991 – In Killeen, Texas, George Hennard, 35, crashes his pickup truck through the wall of a Luby’s cafeteria. He then shoots and kills 23 people before turning the gun on himself.
June 18, 1990 – In Jacksonville, Florida, James Pough, 42, guns down nine people at an auto loan office after his car is repossessed. He later takes his own life.
1980s
September 14, 1989 – In Louisville, Kentucky, Joseph Wesbecker, 47, kills eight co-workers at a printing office before committing suicide. He was armed with a AK-47 assault rifle, two MAC-11 semiautomatic pistols, a .38 caliber handgun, a 9-millimeter semiautomatic pistol and a bayonet. He had been placed on disability leave from his job due to emotional problems.
April 23, 1987 – In Palm Bay, Florida, William Cruse, 60, kills six people in a shopping center with a high-powered .223-caliber rifle. He is the oldest man on death row in Florida until his death of natural causes in November 2009.
August 20, 1986 – At a post office in Edmond, Oklahoma, Patrick Henry Sherrill, 44, guns down 14 co-workers before taking his own life.
July 18, 1984 – In San Ysidro, California, James Huberty, 41, kills 21 adults and children at a McDonalds restaurant. He is armed with a long-barreled Uzi, a pump-action shotgun and a handgun. A police sharpshooter kills Huberty.
June 30, 1984 – In Dallas, Texas, Abdelkrim Belachheb, 39, kills six people in a nightclub. He is sentenced to life in prison.
May 17, 1984 – In Manley Hot Springs, Alaska, Michael Silka, 25, kills seven people during a three-hour rampage. Two days later, the Army veteran is killed in a shootout with Alaska state troopers. Authorities say they believe that Silka also killed his neighbor a month before the rampage.
March 1, 1983 – In McCarthy, Alaska, Louis Hastings, 39, kills six people waiting for a mail plane to arrive on an airstrip in a remote village. He is sentenced to 634 years in prison.
September 25, 1982 – In Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, George Banks, 40, kills 13 people including five of his own children. In September 2011, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturns his death sentence, stating that the former prison guard is mentally incompetent.
August 20, 1982 – In Miami, Florida, Carl Robert Brown, 51, kills eight people with a shotgun at a machine shop. Brown, a teacher, was reportedly angry about a repair bill from the shop. After fleeing the scene on a bicycle, he is fatally shot by a witness who pursues him.
May 7, 1981 – In Salem, Oregon, Lawrence Moore, 25, opens fire with an automatic pistol in a bar, killing four people. He is convicted and sentenced to four life terms.
June 22, 1980 – In Daingerfield, Texas, Alvin Lee King, 45, guns down five people at a Baptist church. While awaiting trial, King hangs himself in his jail cell.
1970s
August 26, 1977 – Emil Benoist, 20, kills six people, targeting joggers and motorcyclists as he walks along railroad tracks in Hackettstown, New Jersey. Armed with a .44-caliber rifle, Benoist takes his own life after being approached by police.
July 12, 1976 – Edward Charles Allaway, 36, fatally shoots seven people in the library of California State University, Fullerton, where he worked as a janitor. He is found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to a state mental hospital.
January 7, 1973 – At a Howard Johnson’s motel in New Orleans, Mark Essex, 23, guns down seven people with a .44 Magnum carbine. Police snipers later kill him.
June 21, 1972 – In Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Edwin Grace, 33, kills six people at an employment agency and seriously wounds himself. He dies in custody several weeks later from the self-inflicted gunshot wound.
1960s
August 1, 1966 – Charles Joseph Whitman, 24, kills 16 and wounds more than 30 from a tower at the University of Texas in Austin. Police officers shoot and kill Whitman in the tower. Whitman, who trained as a Marine marksman, had also killed his mother and wife earlier in the day.
1940s
September 5, 1949 – In Camden, New Jersey, Howard Unruh, 28, shoots and kills 13 people with a Luger pistol as he walks around his neighborhood. Police take him into custody after a gun battle. The WWII veteran is diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and committed to a state psychiatric hospital. He dies at the age of 88.
