Remembering the Simon's Rock College shooting: Great Barrington, Massachusetts, 1992
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| Victims Nacunan Saez and Galen Gibson |
Last Updated: March, 31 2018
Simon's Rock is often forgotten because it doesn't fit the definition of a mass shooting, because only 2 people were killed. This was a mass shooting halted, not by police or an armed bystander but by a jammed gun... there is no way of knowing how many would have been killed that day but the shooter himself confirms that his intention was to kill as many as possible. The Simon's Rock shooting is included in our school shooting research here mostly because this one more than any other illustrates what happens when people don't take a potential threat seriously.
Simon's Rock is often forgotten because it doesn't fit the definition of a mass shooting, because only 2 people were killed. This was a mass shooting halted, not by police or an armed bystander but by a jammed gun... there is no way of knowing how many would have been killed that day but the shooter himself confirms that his intention was to kill as many as possible. The Simon's Rock shooting is included in our school shooting research here mostly because this one more than any other illustrates what happens when people don't take a potential threat seriously.
Date: December 14
Year: 1992
School: Simon's Rock College of Bard
Location: Great Barrington
State: Massachusetts
Wounded: 4
Fatalities: 2
Shots Fired:
Time lapsed: 18 minutes
Police response
time: Shooter's gun jammed, at which point he discarded his weapon and reported his crime.
How ended: Surrendered. He calmly waited for police and was arrested without issue.
Civilians
involved: No. gun jammed.
Perpetrator: Wayne Lo
Age: 18
Family history: Lo was born in Taiwan, his family immigrated to the US when he was young. He was a child prodigy by many accounts, playing classical violin from a young age. Father reported to be a strict disciplinarian, and Lo may have been trying to escape the stress at home when he started at Simon's Rock at the age of 17. Lo had a small group of friends, he even played sports and seemed to fit in. though he described himself as a loner.
Red flags: Lo went to a liberal college, but his own views were deeply conservative. He and his friends often listened to Rush Limbaugh, and espoused racist, sexist, and homophobic views. He once wrote a paper on how to handle AIDS, saying that all homosexuals should be segregated or perhaps even killed.
Wayne began expressing a deep interest in weapons after he enrolled at Simon's Rock. He began asking other students where to get weapons and actively seeking out a gun. His group of friends was seen as angry and they intimidated other students. Lo himself made students uncomfortable even before the shooting. He often "joked" about shooting people who made him angry, and opening fire on his school lunch crowd, warning friends that he was on a bad mood on given days so they should steer clear of the cafeteria.
He began writing his "manifesto" long before the shooting, copying Bible verses into a notebook, especially from the book of Revelations. When asked what he was doing, he said he was writing it so people would think that he was crazy later.
The day of the shooting a package arrived from an arms dealer, and came to the attention of staff. They held a meeting and discussed the need to screen the package vs respecting Lo's privacy. The dormitory adviser Mrs. Robinson was asked to go to his room, watch him open the package and decide what to do from there but the message was somehow confused and Lo retrieved the package. When the Mrs. Robinson arrived in his room, the box was open and the contents spread on the bed, mostly modifications for an automatic rifle he claimed he already owned. The ammo box he said was a gift for his father, there was no ammunition present. The Dean, Mr Rodgers also discussed the package with Lo, and the prohibition of firearms on campus. Rodgers described Lo as "calm, coherent, logical and open" at the time. They discussed Lo's future collegl plans, and Lo left.
A few minutes after this meeting he took a cab to purchase a Chinese-made SKS semiautomatic assault rifle.
That night at dinner Lo told his friends that he planned to kill people. They held a mock "last supper."
That evening an anonymous call warned Mrs. Robinson that Lo planned to shoot her and her husband the next day, so she and her husband were placed in a safe house for the night. As they tried to develop a plan to find Lo and search his room, the first shots rang out.
Wayne began expressing a deep interest in weapons after he enrolled at Simon's Rock. He began asking other students where to get weapons and actively seeking out a gun. His group of friends was seen as angry and they intimidated other students. Lo himself made students uncomfortable even before the shooting. He often "joked" about shooting people who made him angry, and opening fire on his school lunch crowd, warning friends that he was on a bad mood on given days so they should steer clear of the cafeteria.
He began writing his "manifesto" long before the shooting, copying Bible verses into a notebook, especially from the book of Revelations. When asked what he was doing, he said he was writing it so people would think that he was crazy later.
The day of the shooting a package arrived from an arms dealer, and came to the attention of staff. They held a meeting and discussed the need to screen the package vs respecting Lo's privacy. The dormitory adviser Mrs. Robinson was asked to go to his room, watch him open the package and decide what to do from there but the message was somehow confused and Lo retrieved the package. When the Mrs. Robinson arrived in his room, the box was open and the contents spread on the bed, mostly modifications for an automatic rifle he claimed he already owned. The ammo box he said was a gift for his father, there was no ammunition present. The Dean, Mr Rodgers also discussed the package with Lo, and the prohibition of firearms on campus. Rodgers described Lo as "calm, coherent, logical and open" at the time. They discussed Lo's future collegl plans, and Lo left.
A few minutes after this meeting he took a cab to purchase a Chinese-made SKS semiautomatic assault rifle.
That night at dinner Lo told his friends that he planned to kill people. They held a mock "last supper."
That evening an anonymous call warned Mrs. Robinson that Lo planned to shoot her and her husband the next day, so she and her husband were placed in a safe house for the night. As they tried to develop a plan to find Lo and search his room, the first shots rang out.
Mental illness
history: None known. During his trial, he pled insanity and one psychologist affirmed this with a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia. Two other physiologists disagreed, diagnosing him as narcissistic personality disorder.
Drug or
medication use: None
Inspiration: Unknown. Lo was very conservative, and the liberality of his classmates offended him deeply. He was known to spouse racist, homophobic, and sexist views and talked of purity of the races. He was an avid Rush Limbaugh fan.
Much was made of his choice to wear a "Sick of it all" band shirt during his rampage, but Lo downplays this in a letter to author Chuck Klosterman, he wonders what would have happened if he had worn a shirt with the band Poison or Warrant on the front.
Possible motive: Motivations appeared to be religious delusions at the time, with Lo saying God told him to kill the sinners at school. Lo himself has referred to his shooting as a Columbine in reverse. Though he at first exhibited symptoms that appeared to be paranoid schizophrenia, he now considered to be suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder.
Much was made of his choice to wear a "Sick of it all" band shirt during his rampage, but Lo downplays this in a letter to author Chuck Klosterman, he wonders what would have happened if he had worn a shirt with the band Poison or Warrant on the front.
Possible motive: Motivations appeared to be religious delusions at the time, with Lo saying God told him to kill the sinners at school. Lo himself has referred to his shooting as a Columbine in reverse. Though he at first exhibited symptoms that appeared to be paranoid schizophrenia, he now considered to be suffering from a narcissistic personality disorder.
Weapons: SKS semi-automatic rifle
Weapons obtained: Legally, through loophole at the time that allowed out of state purchasers to buy a gun using the gun laws in the person's home state. It was legal for him to own a weapon in Montana, so he was allowed to purchase one in Massachusetts.
Training: None. He had never fired a gun before that night.
Aftermath: Greg Gibson lost his son Galen in the shooting. In 2000 Greg Gibson released the book, Gone Boy: A Walkabout: A Father's Search for the Truth in His Son's Murder. After reading an article about the book, Lo reached out to Gibson and they began corresponding. In 2017, Greg Gibson and Wayne Lo met in person for the first time for StoryCorps.
The band Weezer wrote a song about Wayne Lo and the shooting called "Lullaby For Wayne":
"Wayne you know it’s true
There’s nothing you can do
So put them guns away
Who cares what’s wrong or right
So please give up the fight
Put them guns away."
Lo had his own website (now expired), run by a friend. SkidLo.net now at Hyena Gallery sells drawings, paintings, and embroidered art by Wayne Lo, and proceeds are donated to The Galen Gibson Fund, of which Skidlo is the largest contributor.
Lo has become an artist in his own right, and his work is being exhibited in several galleries around the country. http://www.hyaenagallery.com/waynelo.html
The band Weezer wrote a song about Wayne Lo and the shooting called "Lullaby For Wayne":
"Wayne you know it’s true
There’s nothing you can do
So put them guns away
Who cares what’s wrong or right
So please give up the fight
Put them guns away."
Lo had his own website (now expired), run by a friend. SkidLo.net now at Hyena Gallery sells drawings, paintings, and embroidered art by Wayne Lo, and proceeds are donated to The Galen Gibson Fund, of which Skidlo is the largest contributor.
Lo has become an artist in his own right, and his work is being exhibited in several galleries around the country. http://www.hyaenagallery.com/waynelo.html
Resulting
actions: Lo is serving 2 life sentences without the possibility of parole. He gives frequent media interviews. He still wonders how it was possible for him to purchase a gun in 15 minutes, when he couldn't legally rent a car at the time. He says a waiting period on gun purchases would have prevented his shooting, because he wouldn't have obtained the gun in time for winter break.
20 Years to the day after the Simon's Rock Shooting, a madman walked into Sandy Hook Elementary School and gunned down 20 children, ages 6 and 7 and 6 adults. The survivors of the Simon's Rock shooting speak.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/video/video-update-echoes-of-a-shooting/16918/
Berkshire County District Attorney, David F. Capeless found out about SkidLo.net just after the virginia Tech shooting, and tried to pass a law banning inmates from selling items to profit off of their murders. It was unsuccessful.
20 Years to the day after the Simon's Rock Shooting, a madman walked into Sandy Hook Elementary School and gunned down 20 children, ages 6 and 7 and 6 adults. The survivors of the Simon's Rock shooting speak.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/video/video-update-echoes-of-a-shooting/16918/
Berkshire County District Attorney, David F. Capeless found out about SkidLo.net just after the virginia Tech shooting, and tried to pass a law banning inmates from selling items to profit off of their murders. It was unsuccessful.
The Shooting: Lo walked up to the guard shack and shot the security guard twice in the abdomen while she was on the phone with her husband. Her husband called 911, she survived but has had more than 20 surgeries in the 20+ years since the shooting. He then turned towards the parking lot where a Ford Festiva had just arrived, and fired into the vehicle killing Professor of Spanish, Nacunan Saez.
Lo then headed to the library, where inside people had heard the shots and student Galen Gibson, moved to see if anybody needed help. Lo shot and killed him, and wounded his friend. Lo left the library and moved towards the dormitory where he shot at and wounded 2 students.
Lo himself admits he planned on shooting many more people, but the gun jammed repeatedly throughout the shooting, and eventually jammed completely. Lo put down his weapon and calmly called police, and waited for them to arrive to arrest him. He surrendered peacefully.
Lo then headed to the library, where inside people had heard the shots and student Galen Gibson, moved to see if anybody needed help. Lo shot and killed him, and wounded his friend. Lo left the library and moved towards the dormitory where he shot at and wounded 2 students.
Lo himself admits he planned on shooting many more people, but the gun jammed repeatedly throughout the shooting, and eventually jammed completely. Lo put down his weapon and calmly called police, and waited for them to arrive to arrest him. He surrendered peacefully.
Conspiracy
Theories: It was suggested for a time that the money from SkidLo.net was not going to Greg Gibson, but an Mr. Gibson confirmed that SkidLo.net was it's largest donor.
Sources:
Wayne often corresponds with penpals, and is very open to interviews. I have personally corresponded with him, he is very open to questions about the shooting.
He was unable to answer the one question we all have. "Why?"
Gone Boy – A Walkabout (1999) Gregory Gibson
Running Amok (aka Amok), 2001, Georg Stefan Troller
Criminal Justice.net - Wayne Lo File
http://criminal-justice.iresearchnet.com/crime/school-violence/wayne-lo/
Sources:
Wayne often corresponds with penpals, and is very open to interviews. I have personally corresponded with him, he is very open to questions about the shooting.
He was unable to answer the one question we all have. "Why?"
Gone Boy – A Walkabout (1999) Gregory Gibson
Running Amok (aka Amok), 2001, Georg Stefan Troller
Criminal Justice.net - Wayne Lo File
http://criminal-justice.iresearchnet.com/crime/school-violence/wayne-lo/
The Night Wayne Lo Began Shooting
http://articles.courant.com/1992-12-20/news/0000107037_1_simon-s-rock-college-wayne-lo-semiautomatic-rifle
Murderpedia: Wayne Lo
http://murderpedia.org/male.L/l/lo-wayne.htm
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One word about agendas. I’ve no patience for them. I have worked very hard to look at the big picture for 10 years now, and I ask you to do the same. I have worked very hard to set my own emotions aside, and I ask you to do the same. Please not come here just to push a one sided agenda, I have no interest and I will not subject readers to it. Keep your conspiracy theories to yourself, they do not help the discussion and will NOT be tolerated.
If your comments do not add to the discussion about the overall solution to mass shootings, they will not be published. If #NeverAgain is going to happen, we need real discussions about real solutions.