Its normal: Thats grief and trauma. My heart races, I hyperventilate, I get chest pains, cry and constantly replay triggering memories in my head. Miss Spencer told reporters by telephone during the attack that she was doing it to liven up a boring Monday. Cleveland Elementary School shooting (San Diego), This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 15:06, ClevelandElementarySchoolshooting(Stockton), "SchoolSniperSuspectBraggedOf'SomethingBigToGetOnTV', "Lookbackinsorrow:in1979,ateenagegirlopenedfireonasuburbanSanDiegoelementaryschool;today,asthenationreelsfromarashofsimilartragedies,thesurvivorsstillstruggletounderstandwhyithappened", "GirlSniperKills2,Wounds9atSanDiegoSchool", "ClassmatesSayAllegedSniperSeemedLonely,FriendlessGirl", "40yearsago,BrendaSpencertooklives,changedlivesinamassshootingataSanDiegoelementaryschool", "SchoolShooterBrendaSpencerDeniedParole", "Schoolrifleattacknets25yearstolife", "Noparolegrantedfor'Idon'tlikeMondays'schoolshooter", "Shedidn'tlikeMondays,theydon'twantplaquemoved", "Tragicpast,uncertainpresent,brightfutureofClevelandElementary", "VictimsofSanDiegoSchoolShootingAreForcedtoCopeAgain10YearsLater", "WatchDeadlyCompulsionFullEpisode-KillerKids|Lifetime", "KillerKids-Season3Episode19DeadlyCompulsion", "DeadlyWomen|Season2Episode1ThrillKills", "40YearsAgo,BrendaSpencerTookLivesAtElementarySchool", "1993:ConvictedschoolshooterBrendaSpencerspeakswithSanDiego'sNews8-PART1", "1993:ConvictedschoolshooterBrendaSpencerspeakswithSanDiego'sNews8-PART2", "1993:ConvictedschoolshooterBrendaSpencerspeakswithSanDiego'sNews8-PART3", "1993:ConvictedschoolshooterBrendaSpencerspeakswithSanDiego'sNews8-PART4", MurderHistorian-IDon'tLikeMondaysBlog, UniversityofNorthCarolinaatCharlotte, LibertyPointInternationalMiddleSchool, CentralVisualandPerformingArtsHighSchool, "'NoWaytoPreventThis',SaysOnlyNationWhereThisRegularlyHappens", ListofschoolshootingsintheUnitedStatesbydeathtoll, Students and faculty at Grover Cleveland Elementary School. I have an all-too-American skillset for coping with the aftermath of a mass shooting. When asked why she did it she simply saidI dont like Mondays.. I want to sit by their side as they look to see if any books on hold were for students who died. The teen opened fire on Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Carlos, San Diego. Juvenile Court Judge William L Todd, Jr said he will probably set a date next week for a hearing on whether Miss Spencer will be tried as an adult. The victims would not have wounds, theyd be dead. Susan Rodgers. I dont like Mondays, the girl reportedly told the Tribune. At first, I was incapable of being in public, especially in large crowds. PS: If you liked this article, please share it! The parole board chairman said that as she had not previously told anyone about the allegations, he doubted whether they were true. When it happened at Cleveland Elementary in Stockton, Calif., 23 years ago, many thought a school shooting couldn't get any worse. Theres never any closure. [5][7] Police officers found beer and whiskey bottles cluttered around the house but said Spencer did not appear to be intoxicated when arrested. 4. Court documents filed in the case say 150 people were working at the construction site near John Eaton Elementary School. View our online Press Pack. The Townville Elementary School shooting occurred on September 28, 2016, in Townville, South Carolina, located 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Greenville. I had a few classmates lose their lives and others get injured. With children screaming and bullets flying, Cleveland elementary's principal, Burton Wragg, 53, ran outside to help the victims and move the other children, who were paralyzed with fear, out of. And it has stuck with them. Officers got to the scene and checked on the children and staff at Noble Elementary, Mecklenburg said. She attended PatrickHenryHighSchool, where one teacher recalled frequently inquiring if she was awake in class. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). It was one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. A policeman on the scene, Sgt. [31], The 1982 JapaneseAmerican documentary film TheKillingofAmerica depicts the incident. California Assembly members had met after the shooting to respond to the incident, and they passed the Assault Weapons Control Act, which was the first legislative restriction on assault weapons in the nation and served as a model for a similar federal statute in 1994. A 16-year-old girl, Brenda Spencer, who lived in a house across the street from the school, was convicted of the shootings. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. There were a lot of beer and whisky bottles laying around., Merced Sun-Star (Merced, Calif.) February 1, 1979. University of Iowa shooting in 1991, leaving 6 dead and 1 injured. Texas Gov. A Cleveland Heights elementary school was placed on lockdown Wednesday morning following a shooting in the area.Kaylee Remington, A Cleveland Heights police car sits outside Noble elementary school after a shooting near the school happened earlier in the day. First published on June 10, 2021 / 8:42 PM. , Your email address will not be published. Because we are unable to change what has happened to us, we must instead choose our response and it takes intentionality. According . Since the Columbine High School shooting in 1999, at least 185 children, teachers and other people have lost their lives in campus shootings across the country, according to The Washington Post. Currently, Blountsville Elementary is the home to forty-four classrooms, two computer labs, media center, cafatorium, nurse's office, two administrative offices, a gymnasium, and extraordinary amounts of educational opportunities. Its easy and natural to want to give up, hide, self-medicate, choose anger, hatred, bitterness and even un-forgiveness. Acknowledging my progress encourages me everyday. cleveland.com. According to Cleveland School Remembers, Purdy had walked onto the campus around noon on Jan. 17, 1989. On April 18, 2022, a man entered the school parking lot and fatally stabbed 15-year-old freshman Alycia Reynaga in front of classrooms full of students. [4][5][6][7] After her parents separated, she allegedly lived in poverty with her father, Wallace Spencer. I want to design bookplates and paste them into the two slain teachers favorite books. Jan. 29, 1979: Brenda Spencer, 16, took a rifle with a scope that her father had given her for Christmas and began firing on Grover Cleveland Elementary School across the street from her home. This livens up the day. By MICHAEL GRANBERRY. In the petition, Deputy District Attorney Charles L Patrick requested that Miss Spencer, who police say has a history of petty theft and drug abuse, be tried as an adult. I shot a pig (cop) I think and I want to shoot more. I hate loud unexpected popping noises. Since this mass shooting, countless others like it have happened in the US. Redigera Wikidata. / CBS Sacramento. I saw what I thought was blood as well as yellow tape. They targeted those who believed in God and told us all we were going to die. I had to figure out what living a productive life following trauma and paralysis would look like without an example to model after. Spencer, a San Diego State University employee, was at the scene and helped in trying to talk her into giving up. Evidently, shes pretty garbled over the telephone . On Monday, SWAT officer Mike Hendrickson said police were told Miss Spencer had in the past fantasized in the past about being a sniper. A San Diego police spokesman confirmed that Miss Spencer had a juvenile arrest record and was involved in an incident last year in which several windows were broken at Cleveland Elementary School the same place where Mondays shooting occurred. The source code for the WIKI 2 extension is being checked by specialists of the Mozilla Foundation, Google, and Apple. Later, during tests while she was in custody, it was discovered Spencer had an injury to the temporallobe of her brain. Robb was released from the hospital Wednesday with Charles Cam Miller, 9, who suffered a shoulder wound. The gunman walked onto the elementary school campus, opening fire with a semi-automatic weapon. School bells were calling children and adults to the Grover Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego, California, when all of sudden the crack of shots rang out. I was in a classroom nearby with my sister. However, his was not the only call she received. The incident began when Spencer allegedly aimed the .22 caliber rifle out the window of her home and opened fire on the grammar school across the street. Spencer told the reporter she had shot at the schoolchildren and adults because, "I don't like Mondays. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. Believe me, I get it. Brenda Spencer shot and killed two adults, wounded eight children and a San Diego police officer at Cleveland Elementary School in San Carlos on Jan. 29, 1979, 40 years ago. 260 Page Street. About 2 p.m. an officer said the girl was taking narcotics and drinking. In 1989, 24-year-old Patrick Purdy walked onto the playground at Cleveland Elementary School in Stockton, California, with an AK-47 and opened fire, killing five children and a teacher. She reportedly answered: "I don't like Mondays. All those hit by gunfire were outside the school. ________________________________________________________________, WATCH MORE: 5 hacks to get you through a power outage. Brenda Spencers classmates describe her as a tomboy and a gun nut who had difficulty adjusting to life. Find out more here. Log in, Background Checks Frequently Asked Questions, Guns, Politics, Legislation, and the Courts, States United to Prevent Gun Violence Blog, The countrys gun violence epidemic is killing more children than ever, A World Without School Shootings? San Juan Unified staffer repeats racist slur when telling students to stop using it, 'She was a loveable soul': Cousin identifies victim of South Sacramento homicide. A plaque and flagpole were erected at Cleveland Elementary in memory of the shooting victims. This addition included seven classrooms. For 7.5 minutes, as I took cover under a table, I listened to the killers gun down friends and classmates, and waited to die. I have PTSD, trouble sleeping. I definitely still have my days where Im reminded by everything. This livens up the day",[1][2] which inspired BobGeldof and JohnnieFingers to write the BoomtownRats song "IDon'tLikeMondays". Please note maps are intended to give a general indication of a school's attendance area. It was her first teaching job in California. If you liked this article, please share it! On January 17, 1989, almost ten years after the events at San Diego's Grover Cleveland Elementary, there was anothershooting at a school coincidentally named Grover Cleveland Elementary, this one in Stockton,California. Now that you know, have fun looking around! Florida Prepaid Open Enrollment runs now through April 30th. When 16-year-old Brenda Ann Spencer opened fire on Cleveland Elementary School in the San Diego bedroom community of San Carlos, the incident marked the first high profile mass school shooting in the United States. Now, my sense of security and safety is completely gone. As a teacher, my job was first to make sure my students were safe. It was a dark moment in history, remembered for its impact on the community and the lives of five students, none above 10 years old, that were taken by a gunman. SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - Survivors of the Cleveland Elementary School shooting in Stockton are speaking out after a federal judge struck down California's assault weapons ban, calling it unconstitutional. Despite being a teenager, she was tried as an adult, because of the seriousness of her crime. Overall, though, I believe I am almost there with closure. That shooting was in 1989. While there, she spoke by telephone to a reporter from TheSanDiegoUnion-Tribune, who had been randomly calling telephone numbers in the neighborhood. As first responders . Today, Rodgers is a part-time seamstress, librarian and mother of two. [5], Further casualties were avoided only because the police obstructed her line of fire by moving a garbage truck in front of the school entrance. The gunman, Patrick Purdy, who had an extended criminal history, shot and killed five schoolchildren and wounded 32 others. Change). I identify deeply with the staff at Robb Elementary. When officers entered the house after Miss Spencer surrendered. I was in the library, where much of the violence took place. Two more of my students were wounded by bullets and shrapnel, and all of them were seared by what they witnessed. Every time I walk into a room I look for the nearest exit or for a good hiding spot. During the first burst of gunfire, school principal Burton A. Wragg, 53, and school custodian Michael Suchar, 56, were fatally shot, said San Diego Superintendent of Schools Tom Goodwin. Julie Schardt was a second grade teacher at Cleveland Elementary School in 1989, when five kids, age 6 to 9, were shot and killed. The 2006 British documentary I Don't Like Mondays also revisits the case. [9], In early 1978, staff at a facility for problem students, into which Spencer had been referred for truancy, informed her parents that she was suicidal. High school student Lucy Sarkissian was in eight grade when two students at her school, STEM School Highlands Ranch, opened fire, killing one student and wounding eight others. As of 2022, Spencer has been unsuccessful at six parole board hearings. There was no option to opt our kids out of school that day. Investigators learned the ex-boyfriend drove away in a white SUV. The latest school shooting took the lives of 21 people, including 19 children at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school that was just days away from breaking for summer vacation. [3] Geldof has later mentioned that, "[Spencer] wrote to me saying 'she was glad she'd done it because I'd made her famous,' which is not a good thing to live with. The Attorney General's Office will also look to extend the hold on the ruling throughout the appeals process. "[30] Spencer disputes ever contacting Geldof. Even though our incident was over 33 years ago, when something like this happens, the images from that day always revisit me. People dont talk enough about the rush to return to normalcy after a mass shooting. Uvalde took me back to our cafeteria, where parents came to pick up their children. [5][7] Spencer later said, "I asked for a radio and got a rifle." If the case is handled in Juvenile Court, the girl could be free within seven years.In addition to murder, the red-haired Patrick Henry High School junior was charged with nine counts of assault with intent to kill and one of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer. It surprises many this ban was put in place after the first mass shooting at a school in this country. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. The five shooters are Robert Poulin, Brenda Spencer, Wayne Lo, Luke Woodham, and Asa Coon. In 2009, the board again refused her application for parole, and ruled it would be ten years before she would be considered again. Public school 426 Students Grades PK-8 & Ungraded. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. Cleveland Elementary School Unclaimed. Investigators said the .22-caliber rifle the girl lay down as she was arrested was a Christmas present from her father, Wallace Spencer, a supervisor of technical services at San Diego State University. Its crazy to think that I was incapable of dining in at a restaurant a few years ago given that I now work as a hostess in one. He was shot in the foot and chest. This livens up the day. Asked if she had any particular targets, she said, No one in particular. Most of the schools 300 pupils were herded into an auditorium where they remained for several hours until they were evacuated. They say she was skinny, shy, frumpy and came from a broken home. I also had to say goodbye to everything I perceived as normalcy. Headteacher sacked 'after sending parents a list of striking teachers' as school launches probe, Isle of Innisfree ferry: Blaze breaks out on boat carrying 183 people in English Channel as lifeboats scramble to scene. [deadlink][5][7] [8], Acquaintances said Spencer expressed hostility toward policemen, had spoken about shooting one, and had talked of doing something big to get on television. It was nearly impossible to find footing in those days. Learn how your comment data is processed. At the time, she lived in a house across the street from the school. 34 children and a teacher were shot, killing 5 of the children, with an AK-47 knockoff. It just keeps happening whether its school, work or vacation. "He's opening the door to who knows what kind of violence, utterly devastating," Weldon said. 1979 mass shooting in San Diego, California, U.S. For the shooting in Northern California, see. From 2005 to 2017, it housed the Magnolia Science Academy,[26] a public charter middleschool serving students in grades 68. The Cleveland Elementary School shooting was the first truly reported school shooting. According to the San Diego Police Museum, Spencer took an early liking to guns and to stories about violence. 388 Bergen Street, Newark, NJ 07108. Thomas, now 35, is senior principal systems engineer for the aerospace and defense industry.
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