A devastating mass shooting occurred on the Florida State University (FSU) campus in Tallahassee, Fl. April 17, where two employees were tragically killed and five others were injured.
In the early afternoon, shots were fired near noon as chaos began to unfold near the student union area. The shooter reportedly had been in the area before but had previously left before returning and committing the crime. The suspect was caught entering the building through Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) footage as a lockdown notice was issued once at noon and another 19 minutes later. The whole tragedy had occurred in a total of 15 minutes as police acted quickly and shot the suspect in the jaw for not complying with direct orders.
Immediately after, there were first-hand accounts circulating on social media as students took to public platforms to express their fear and close encounters with death. One controversial video in particular depicted a student walking over a body while drinking out of a Starbucks cup. Many people online condemned this student for the lack of respect they showed, which unleashed a long period of discourse over the whole tragedy on the internet.
This calmed down soon, as people were more focused on the motive of the crime rather than wanting to cause further damage to the student who also experienced the same traumatic situation. People were quick to support the families of those impacted by the shooting, with multiple GoFundMe pages being set up for the victims.
Names of the victims were released shortly after, April 21, while some of the injured victims were released from the hospital after receiving successful treatment.
The gunman was identified as 20-year-old student Phoenix Ikner and stepson of Jessica Ikner, a deputy at the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. He was released from the hospital and was arrested, being charged with two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted first-degree murder. A motive has not been found yet, as Ikner plead the fifth and refused to answer the officer’s questions or take part in the investigation.
The Florida State Attorney’s office has decided to seek the death penalty against Ikner and he has been denied bond. He first appeared in court, May 13 and was ordered to not contact any of the victims or their families, along with any witnesses from that day.
The trial has not yet had a date set, but the victims and families are hopeful justice will soon be brought to the school.
