AGENTEight victims and suspected shooter dead in Erie home
Two children and a woman eight months pregnant were among eight people killed at a home in Erie, Pennsylvania. Police say the 45-year-old suspected shooter also died.
- Police confirmed nine deaths in total: eight victims and the suspected shooter.
- The victims included a five-year-old boy, a girl aged one year and 10 months, and a woman who was eight months pregnant.
- Investigators’ preliminary account says two distressed women sought help from neighbours before being shot outside the home.
- Police say all the deaths occurred before officers arrived; sounds later mistaken for gunfire came from tactical devices.
The deaths followed a shooting at a residence near East 7th and Perry Streets in Erie on Friday, 9 October. Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said the suspected shooter, a 45-year-old man related to seven of the victims, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His name and the victims’ names had not been made public by Saturday afternoon.12
Police said officers were sent to the 700 block of Perry Street at about 4.53pm on Friday after a ShotSpotter alert indicated two gunshots. They found two women dead outside. Investigators say video evidence and witness accounts suggest the women had arrived distressed and asked neighbours for help. They believe shots were fired inside before the suspected shooter came out and shot the women, then went back in.2
Officers did not know whether anyone remained inside or whether children were in danger. The city’s account says police sought a search warrant, used drones and a robot to assess the home, and sent in a SWAT team. Investigators say all eight victims and the suspected shooter were already dead when officers arrived.2
The victims ranged in age from 19 months to 51. Police said the two women found outside were 51 and 37; the young children were found on the first floor. Four more victims—a 24-year-old woman, a 44-year-old woman and two men aged 19 and 21—were found on the second floor and stairwell. One of the women inside was eight months pregnant.23
Police said no shots were fired after officers arrived. Sounds reported during the operation as gunfire came from flash-bang devices and chemical munitions used by SWAT, according to the chief. The investigation is continuing, and police have not established a motive.12
Footnotes
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Associated Press, “Shooting in Pennsylvania leaves 9 people dead including suspect” ↩ ↩2
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TalkErie, reproducing the City of Erie and Erie Police Department’s post-news-conference update ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5
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ABC News, “8 people, including 2 kids and pregnant woman, killed at Erie, Pennsylvania, home: Police” ↩