Questions linger about Perry school shooter's motive, where he got firearms
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Updated: 9:38 PM CST Jan 5, 2024
Questions linger about Perry school shooter's motive, where he got firearms
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Updated: 9:38 PM CST Jan 5, 2024
WEST DES MOINES, THERE THIS MORNING, ALONG WITH CLIVE, URBANDALE, WE HAVE TODD MAGEL IN TO TALK ABOUT SORT OF THE TIMELINE OF THIS AND THAT MASSIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT RESPONSE, WHICH WAS SO TENSE IN THOSE MOMENTS. IT WAS ALEX AND ERIC, THE DISPATCH RECORDINGS YOUâRE GOING TO HEAR SHOW A CALM, PROFESSIONAL, BUT CLEARLY A VERY CONCERNED LAW ENFORCEMENT EFFORT TO DEAL WITH THIS SCHOOL SHOOTING, THE EMERGENCY RADIO TRAFFIC BEGAN SHORTLY AFTER 730. AS WE MENTIONED, AROUND 737 THIS MORNING. NOW, WHAT YOU WILL HEAR NEXT IS A COMBINATION OF DALLAS COUNTY SHERIFFâS DISPATCHER DEPUTIES AND EMS PERSONNEL. AS THAT FIRSTRILLIONEPORT WENT OUT, ALL UNITS OF DALLAS COUNTY, WEâVE GOT AN ACTIVE, SERIOUS, ACTIVE AT PERRY HIGH SCHOOL, ACTIVE SERIOUS ACTIVATION AT PERRY HIGH SCHOOL. ITâS GOING TO BE IN REFERENCE TO A POSSIBLE GUNSHOTS, POSSIBLE GUNSHOTS AT PERRY HIGH SCHOOL SWUNG DIRECT. DO YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THE CAMERAS? WEâRE GETTING PULLED UP NOW. LET ME DOWN IN THE HALLWAY. COPY. WE SEE SOMETHING ON THE WEST HALLWAY. WEST HALLWAY? WHAT CHANNEL AM I SWITCHING TO? THEREâS A LITTLE BIT OF A MALE SUBJECT DOWN IN THE HALLWAY. APPEARS TO BE SELF-INFLICTED. OH. SHOT WOUND. IâM SHOWING OTHER VICTIMS. DALLAS. SUBJECT THATâS DOWN. IS DECEASED. COPY. SUBJECT DOWN. DECEASED. LOCATION. WE ARE OUTSIDE OF ROOM 308. I NEED MULTIPLE AMBULANCES, SO WEâRE GOING TO NEED BOTH OTHER EMS UNITS HEADED THAT WAY. DO WE HAVE A NUMBER OF VICTIMS OR AN ESTIMATED NUMBER OF VICTIMS? COPY. WEâRE GETTING MULTIPLE REPORTS. DALLAS 5993. LETâS GO AHEAD AND PUT BOTH THE HELICOPTERS IN ROUTE. ALSO, LETâS GET VERY CLEAR THERE SO THAT WE CAN HAVE LANDING ZONE AND WE CAN START TRIAGE. WEâVE GOT TWO PATIENTS IN OUR AMBULANCE. CAN YOU RESERVE A HELICOPTER FOR ME? HOW MANY PATIENTS DO WE HAVE ON SCENE? UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME WE HAVE TWO IN OUR TRUCK. REPORTS OF MULTIPLE INSIDE DALLAS AND POLK COUNTY BEEN ADVISED TO ADVISE LOCAL HOSPITALS OF POSSIBLE MASS CASUALTY INCIDENT. COPY. WEâRE CALLING THEM NOW THE MIDDLE SCHOOL HAS BEEN, UH, CLEARED. UM, OFFICERS ARE DOING A SECONDARY SWEEP. WEâVE GOT TRIAGE AREA CURRENTLY, AND HEâS ADVISING NO OTHER INCOMING UNITS NEED TO COME INTO THE SCHOOL. RIGHT NOW. I AM IN, UH, COMMAND OF EMS TRANSPORT. WE BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE OUR MOST CRITICAL OUT NOW. THATâS JUST THE ARC OF SORT OF WHAT HAPPENED. THE ENTIRE EXCHANGE TOOK ABOUT AN HOUR. WEâVE EDITED THAT DOWN AND WHAT I THINK YOU CAN TAKE AWAY FROM THAT, IT SEEMS CLEAR THAT AT LEAST TWO PEOPLE, AS WEâVE BEEN REPORTING, WERE INJURED WITH MULTIPLE GUNSHOT WOUNDS THAT CAME IN SOME OF THAT DISPATCH DIALOG AND THAT IT APPEARS B
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Questions linger about Perry school shooter's motive, where he got firearms
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Updated: 9:38 PM CST Jan 5, 2024
A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation into Thursday's deadly school shooting in Perry said federal and state investigators were interviewing the shooter's friends and analyzing his social media profiles, including posts on TikTok and Reddit. Authorities said the suspect, identified as Dylan Butler, had a pump-action shotgun and a small-caliber handgun when he shot and killed 11-year-old Ahmir Jolliff before classes started Thursday morning. Butler wounded seven others, including four students and three staffers, before killing himself. Authorities have provided no information about a possible motive or how Butler, who they believe acted alone, obtained the firearms.Video above: Timeline of Perry High School shooting in IowaThe news that seven students and staff suffered âwounds or injuries of varying degreeâ during the shooting was two more than authorities said Thursday afternoon. Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation spokesman Mitch Mortvedt said the number increased after investigators later learned about two more wounded faculty members. All seven are believed to have been either wounded or grazed by bullets, and suffered injuries ranging from significant to minor.On Friday, Perry High School Principal Dan Marburger and two students remained hospitalized.Mortvedt said Marburger, who has been principal since 1995, did some âpretty significant thingsâ to protect others during the shooting, but didnât release details. Perry Superintendent Clark Wicks said Marburger was a âheroâ who intervened with Butler so students could escape. Wicks said other staff also acted heroically, including Middle School Assistant Principal Adam Jessen who âcarried a wounded student into a safe area.âShortly before Thursdayâs shooting, Butler posted a photo on TikTok inside the bathroom of Perry High School, the official said. The photo was captioned ânow we waitâ and the song âStray Bulletâ by the German band KMFDM accompanied it. Investigators also have found photos Butler posted posing with firearms, according to the official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.Two friends and their mother who spoke with the AP said Butler was a quiet person who had been bullied relentlessly since elementary school. Sisters Yesenia Roeder and Khamya Hall, both 17, said alongside their mother, Alita, that it escalated recently when Butlerâs younger sister started getting picked on, too.âHe was hurting. He got tired. He got tired of the bullying. He got tired of the harassment,â Yesenia Roeder Hall said. âWas it a smart idea to shoot up the school? No. God, no.âInvestigators are still working to get a âgood grasp of who Dylan was,â and the parents have been cooperating, Mortvedt said. The investigation will include Butlerâs background along with the âenvironment of the school,â he said.Wicks wouldnât discuss whether Butler had been bullied but he defended the way his district responds to those situations.âWe take every bullying situation seriously and our goal is to always have that safe and inviting atmosphere, but Iâm not going to comment on this individual case as well as any other individual case,â Wicks said.Butlerâs parents have been fixtures of the Perry community. His father is director of the cityâs airport after serving as its public works director for years, where he won praise helping clean up Perry after a devastating wind storm in 2020. His mother has also owned a small business and served on a city development board. The parents have not responded to messages seeking comment.Perry has about 8,000 residents and is about 40 miles northwest of Des Moines, on the edge of the state capitalâs metropolitan area. It is home to a large pork-processing plant and low-slung, single-story homes spread among trees now shorn of their leaves by winter.The high school is part of the 1,785-student Perry Community School District. Perry is more diverse than Iowa as a whole. Census figures show 31% of its residents are Hispanic, compared with less than 7% statewide. Those figures also show nearly 19% of the townâs residents were born outside the U.S.Wicks said the soonest classes will resume in the town will be next Friday for elementary and middle school students; classes are canceled at the high school all next week.âThis is an extremely painful and difficult time for our entire school community, and in our grief, we will take time to remember,â Wicks said.Despite the shock of the shooting, Perry Mayor Dirk Cavanaugh expressed confidence the community would get through the painful experience.âWe are a small town, but we will pull together in a big way to get through this.âFull coverage of Perry school shooting:Authorities identify sixth-grader killed in Perry shootingAuthorities identify 17-year-old shooter who killed 1, wounded 7 in Perry school shootingFamilies recount terrifying moments from inside Perry High School during deadly shootingPolice on massive response to Perry High School: 'No community is immune'Iowa leaders, elected officials react to Perry High School shootingResources available for families impacted by Perry High School shootingDispatch recordings provide timeline of Perry High School shooting in IowaPerry High School principal Dan Marburger among 7 wounded'May this vigil be a beacon of light': Hundreds gather at Perry park to pray and mourn as a communityFamilies of Sandy Hook victims release statement on Perry High School shootingPerry school shooting creates new questions for Republicans in Iowaâs presidential caucusesPerry school superintendent provides update on when classes may resume after deadly shooting
PERRY, Iowa (AP) —
A law enforcement official briefed on the investigation into Thursday's deadly school shooting in Perry said federal and state investigators were interviewing the shooter's friends and analyzing his social media profiles, including posts on TikTok and Reddit.
Authorities said the suspect, identified as Dylan Butler, had a pump-action shotgun and a small-caliber handgun when he shot and killed 11-year-old Ahmir Jolliff before classes started Thursday morning. Butler wounded seven others, including four students and three staffers, before killing himself.
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Authorities have provided no information about a possible motive or how Butler, who they believe acted alone, obtained the firearms.
Video above: Timeline of Perry High School shooting in Iowa
The news that seven students and staff suffered âwounds or injuries of varying degreeâ during the shooting was two more than authorities said Thursday afternoon. Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation spokesman Mitch Mortvedt said the number increased after investigators later learned about two more wounded faculty members. All seven are believed to have been either wounded or grazed by bullets, and suffered injuries ranging from significant to minor.
Mortvedt said Marburger, who has been principal since 1995, did some âpretty significant thingsâ to protect others during the shooting, but didnât release details. Perry Superintendent Clark Wicks said Marburger was a âheroâ who intervened with Butler so students could escape. Wicks said other staff also acted heroically, including Middle School Assistant Principal Adam Jessen who âcarried a wounded student into a safe area.â
Shortly before Thursdayâs shooting, Butler posted a photo on TikTok inside the bathroom of Perry High School, the official said. The photo was captioned ânow we waitâ and the song âStray Bulletâ by the German band KMFDM accompanied it. Investigators also have found photos Butler posted posing with firearms, according to the official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.
Two friends and their mother who spoke with the AP said Butler was a quiet person who had been bullied relentlessly since elementary school. Sisters Yesenia Roeder and Khamya Hall, both 17, said alongside their mother, Alita, that it escalated recently when Butlerâs younger sister started getting picked on, too.
âHe was hurting. He got tired. He got tired of the bullying. He got tired of the harassment,â Yesenia Roeder Hall said. âWas it a smart idea to shoot up the school? No. God, no.â
Investigators are still working to get a âgood grasp of who Dylan was,â and the parents have been cooperating, Mortvedt said. The investigation will include Butlerâs background along with the âenvironment of the school,â he said.
Wicks wouldnât discuss whether Butler had been bullied but he defended the way his district responds to those situations.
âWe take every bullying situation seriously and our goal is to always have that safe and inviting atmosphere, but Iâm not going to comment on this individual case as well as any other individual case,â Wicks said.
Butlerâs parents have been fixtures of the Perry community. His father is director of the cityâs airport after serving as its public works director for years, where he won praise helping clean up Perry after a devastating wind storm in 2020. His mother has also owned a small business and served on a city development board. The parents have not responded to messages seeking comment.
Perry has about 8,000 residents and is about 40 miles northwest of Des Moines, on the edge of the state capitalâs metropolitan area. It is home to a large pork-processing plant and low-slung, single-story homes spread among trees now shorn of their leaves by winter.
The high school is part of the 1,785-student Perry Community School District. Perry is more diverse than Iowa as a whole. Census figures show 31% of its residents are Hispanic, compared with less than 7% statewide. Those figures also show nearly 19% of the townâs residents were born outside the U.S.
Wicks said the soonest classes will resume in the town will be next Friday for elementary and middle school students; classes are canceled at the high school all next week.
âThis is an extremely painful and difficult time for our entire school community, and in our grief, we will take time to remember,â Wicks said.
Despite the shock of the shooting, Perry Mayor Dirk Cavanaugh expressed confidence the community would get through the painful experience.
âWe are a small town, but we will pull together in a big way to get through this.â