Thread: Five killed, 10 hospitalized in Rancho Tehama shooting CA.

UPDATE: Five killed, 10 hospitalized in Rancho Tehama shooting

Jim Schultz, Record Searchlight Published 8:33 a.m. PT Nov. 14, 2017 | Updated 12:23 p.m. PT Nov. 14, 2017

Undersheriff Phil Johnston of the Tehama County Sheriff's Office gives an update to the media about the Rancho Tehama shooting on Nov. 14, 2017.

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(Photo: Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight)


Five people have been killed — including the shooter — in a mass shooting about 15 miles southwest of Red Bluff that also hospitalized at least 10 people, including children.

Tehama County Undersheriff Phil Johnston said the victim toll may rise. He confirmed two children were also shot and wounded, and the shootings happened at seven or more different spots.

"It's a very sad day for us in Tehama County," said a deputy, who was visibly shaken.

Ten shooting victims were taken to various hospitals around the North State: Three to Mercy Medical Center in Redding, two to St. Elizabeth Community Hospital in Red Bluff and five to Enloe Medical Center in Chico, employees at those hospitals said.

It was not immediately clear whether more victims had been hospitalized.

It all started shortly after 8 a.m. when a lone shooter opened fire at several locations with a rifle and two handguns, a deputy at the scene said.

There were at least 100 law enforcement officers at the scene, he said. The FBI also "is sending some teams up to assist at the request of Tehama County authorities," said Jason Wandel, chief division counsel at the FBI's Sacramento field office.

"Multiple shots were fired in Rancho Tehama. That evolved into multiple victims and multiple shots at the school," the deputy said. "I am told the suspected shooter is deceased from law enforcement bullets."

Buy Photo Casey Burnett, a resident of Rancho Tehama, holds her baby near a roadblock into the community on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017. Burnett said she saw the gunman driving around the community near Red Bluff, California, shooting randomly from his car. (Photo: Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight)


Children among the gunshot victims

The deputy said he had no information on victims at the school, but that deputies had escorted a busload of children from the school to the Rancho Tehama Association.

Rosie DeOliveira, administrative assistant at the association, said that deputies have instructed the community to "shelter in place," stay indoors and stay low.

"Our doors are locked," she said.

An official at the Corning Elementary School District confirmed the elementary school in Rancho Tehama is on lockdown. The nearby Rancho Tehama Airport is also on lockdown.

No one answered the phone at the elementary school, and an official speaking for Rich DuVarney, Tehama County superintendent of schools, said he was trying to find out what was happening.

It isn't the first time the school had a gun scare.

In December 2015, a then-43-year-old woman was arrested after a school employee called law enforcement because she allegedly was walking around with a sawed-off shotgun. The woman also was arrested, in part, because deputies said they found a stolen pickup in her yard.

A helicopter medical crew reported they were transporting a 6-year-old victim to Mercy Medical Center in Redding. The child had two gunshot wounds, according to emergency scanner traffic.

A second child also was reported to have been shot in the right leg, according to emergency dispatch reports.

A 30-year-old man was also being taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the right thigh, according to emergency dispatch reports.

The scene described

It's still unclear what the shooter's motive was.

Initial reports said somebody was barricaded in a structure and there were multiple victims, including one who was dead.

Rancho Tehama resident Salvador Tello said he was taking his three children to school when the gunman fired at a truck in front of him.

He said he saw bullets hit the truck in front of him, so he made his children get down and put his truck in reverse.

Tello said that, as he left, he saw a woman lying dead in the street with her husband next to her, apparently wounded.

Jose Garcia, who owns the La Fortuna Market, about a half-mile from the school, also said he heard "a lot of shooting" near the school shortly after 8 a.m.

Living next to alleged gunman was 'hell'

The Rancho Tehama Reserve — a subdivision home to about 1,485 people — is described on its website as a “quiet private country community” located 12 miles west of Interstate 5 between Red Bluff and Corning. The community is a place “where people are friendly and the pace is relaxed," the website reads.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, it was 86.3 percent white in 2010 and had a poverty rate of 43 percent.

Resident Brian Flint said he got a call in the morning that his roommate was injured and that his truck had been stolen. It turned out his neighbor was the gunman, Flint said.

“The crazy thing is that the neighbor has been shooting a lot of bullets lately, hundreds of rounds, large magazines,” Flint said.

“We made it aware that this guy is crazy and he’s been threatening us.”

Living near the gunman was "hell," Flint said, and the man was a known felon who often harassed him and his neighbors.

Katrina Gierman, who lives near the elementary school, said she heard gunshots when she went outside.

"I have not left my house because I am with my newborn son," Gierman said. "Very scary moment."

"I have the right to bear arms, and I will protect my son if I have to," she said.

Politicians react to 'senseless violence'

Gov. Jerry Brown said in a statement on his website that he was "saddened to hear about today’s violence in Tehama County, which shockingly involved schoolchildren."

"We offer our condolences to the families who lost loved ones and unite with all Californians in grief," the statement reads.

California Senator Jim Nielsen, who oversees the area of the shooting, said in a statement that his "heart goes out to the victims and loved ones affected by Tuesday morning’s horrific shooting in Rancho Tehama," calling the incident "senseless violence."

“We ... will be praying for the speedy recovery of those injured and for the emotional peace for those affected," the statement reads. “We lift up in prayer those killed and wounded, their families and loved ones, and the first responders and others who put their lives on the line to protect and save innocent lives.”

Former California Attorney General and current U.S. Senator Kamala Harris also weighed in, saying on Twitter that she was "heartbroken" about the shooting and "closely monitoring the situation."

"Grateful to the officers and first responders on the scene," she tweeted.

Record Searchlight reporters are at the scene.

http://www.redding.com/story/news/lo...ama/862125001/

Who is the shooter? I read it 3 times and couldn't find the name of the shooter. Did I miss it or is it not in the story? Locals who were interviewed seem to know who it is. If you see it, let me know. Thanks!!

They are being super tight lipped about the identity and possible motivations of the shooter!

Yeah, I couldn't find the name or background in the article. Very strange. Either an illegal alien or a terrorist, more than likely.

The sheriff said they are trying to notify the next of kin before releasing his name.

. . . Brian Flint told Record Searchlight newspaper after the incident that his neighbor was the gunman in Tuesday’s deadly shooting.
"The crazy thing is that the neighbor has been shooting a lot of bullets lately, hundreds of rounds, large magazines," Flint said. "We made it aware that this guy is crazy and he's been threatening us." . . .

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/14...ry-school.html

It's still unclear what the shooter's motive was, but officials at the press conference said there was a history of neighborhood issues with him.
The identity of the shooter is not yet known, but Johnston said the suspect was involved in a domestic-violence situation Monday and, a few months earlier, a stabbing. . .

Record Searchlight newspaper

Johnston said police did not immediately know what may have motivated the attack, which stretched across at least seven locations. Officials believe they have identified the shooter, though they were working to confirm the man’s name, Johnston said.
The gunman, who was previously known to law enforcement, did not appear to have any “real connection to any of the victims,” Johnston said.
While details about what led up to the gunfire remained unclear, Johnston said authorities were told by neighbors that “there was a domestic violence incident” involving the suspected attacker. He later said police were aware of reports that the domestic violence incident happened a day before the shootings.
Johnston also said there appeared to be an ongoing neighborhood dispute involving the attacker, who had a residence in Rancho Tehama. . .

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/education/wp/2017/11/14/officials-say-at-least-3-dead-after-shooting-at-multiple-scenes-including-california-elementary-school/?utm_term=.4e7e7bed37c5

Late Tuesday, Tehama County District Attorney's Office confirmed that Kevin Janson Neal, 43, was identified as the suspected gunman.

Mugshot

Kevin Janson Neal.