California State University, Fullerton massacre
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| California State University, Fullerton massacre | |
|---|---|
| Location | Fullerton, California, United States |
| Date | July 12, 1976 |
| Target | California State University, Fullerton |
| Attack type | School shooting |
| Weapon(s) | .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle |
| Deaths | 7 |
| Injured | 2 |
| Perpetrator(s) | Edward Charles Allaway |
The California State University, Fullerton massacre was an incident of mass murder that occurred on Monday, July 12, 1976, at California State University, Fullerton, in Fullerton, California, United States.
The gunman, 37-year-old Edward Charles Allaway, was a custodian at the school's library. Armed with a semi-automatic rifle he purchased at a Buena Park Kmart, Allaway killed seven people and wounded two others in the library's first-floor lobby and at the building's Instructional Media Center (IMC), located in the basement, before fleeing the school campus. He later drove to a nearby hotel in Anaheim where his former wife worked, and there he telephoned police to report his actions.
Allaway was later found guilty of six counts of first degree murder and one count of second degree murder. However, a second phase of the trial determined that he was not sane. Five different mental health professionals diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia. He presented a history of mental illness. He was committed to the California state mental hospital system, and remains at Patton State Hospital in San Bernardino.
Allaway's apparent motive was that he thought pornographers were forcing his wife to appear in movies. This served to enrage him. His wife had filed for divorce just before the attack occurred. The defense alleged that commercial pornographic movies were being shown by library staff members before library opening hours and in break rooms, but Allaway's wife was not in them.
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[edit] Dead
- Stephen L. Becker, age 32, assistant librarian
- Seth Arthur Fessenden, age 72, professor emeritus of speech
- Paul F. Herzberg, age 30, Instructional Media Center (IMC) photographer
- Bruce A. Jacobson, age 32, IMC equipment technician
- Donald Eugene Karges, age 41, custodian
- Deborah Delores Paulsen, age 25, custodian
- Frank G. Teplansky, age 51, IMC graphic artist
[edit] Wounded
- Maynard Hoffman, age 64, custodial supervisor
- Donald Keran, age 55, library supervisor
[edit] Trial
After a 1977 jury convicted Allaway of murder but deadlocked in the sanity phase of the trial, a judge found Allaway not guilty by reason of insanity. By law, defendants found insane are committed to a mental institution until they are found sane. In 2001, Allaway's clinical team at Patton State Hospital in San Bernardino County determined that his illness, paranoid schizophrenia, was in remission, giving Allaway his best shot at freedom. But in a hearing that attracted international media attention, a judge ruled that Allaway still posed a danger to society and should not be released during a ruling upheld by the California Supreme Court in December 2003.
