Off-duty police officer goes on rampage

[tommy]

CRANDON, Wis. (Oct. 7) - An off-duty sheriff's deputy went on a shooting rampage early Sunday at a home where seven young people had gathered for pizza and movies, killing six and critically injuring the other before authorities took him down, officials said.


Photo Gallery: Small Town Shaken by Violence
Andy Manis, AP Residents of Crandon, Wis., hug near the site where an off-duty sheriff's deputy went on a shooting rampage Sunday, killing six people and injuring a seventh inside a home before authorities reportedly shot him dead.
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The gunman, Tyler Peterson, was 20 years old and worked full-time as a Forest County deputy sheriff and part-time as a Crandon police officer, said Police Chief John Dennee.

Three of the victims were students at the small town's high school, and three were recent graduates, a school official said. The gunman may have graduated from the same high school.

Peterson was not working at the time of the shooting, Sheriff Keith Van Cleve said.

The survivor was hospitalized in nearby Marshfield, Dennee said. A Crandon police officer who fired back was treated for minor injuries and released.

Gary Bradley, mayor of the city of about 2,000, said earlier Sunday that the suspect had been brought down by a sniper, but Van Cleve would not confirm that officers shot the suspect.

It wasn't immediately clear what the gunman's motive was, but the mother of a 14-year-old victim said the suspect may have been a jealous boyfriend. The shooting occurred in a white, two-story duplex about a block from downtown Crandon.

"It was a pizza and movie party," Dennee said.

Three of the victims were Crandon High School students, said schools Superintendent Richard Peters, and the other three had graduated within the past three years.

"There is probably nobody in Crandon who is not affected by this," Peters said, adding that students would be especially affected. "They are going to wake up in shock and disbelief and a lot of pain."

Peters did not know whether Peterson had also graduated from the 300-student high school. But Crandon resident Karly Johnson, 16, said that she knew the gunman and that he had helped her in a tech education class.

"He graduated with my brother," she said. "He was nice. He was an average guy. Normal. You wouldn't think he could do that."

One of the dead was 14-year-old Lindsey Stahl, said her mother, Jenny Stahl, 39.

She said her daughter called her Saturday night and asked whether she could sleep over at a friend's house. Jenny Stahl agreed.

"I'm waiting for somebody to wake me up right now. This is a bad, bad dream," the weeping mother said. "All I heard it was a jealous boyfriend and he went berserk. He took them all out."

Marci Franz, 35, who lives two houses south of the duplex, said gunshots awoke her.

"I heard probably five or six shots, a short pause and then five or six more," she said. "I wasn't sure if it was gunfire initially. I thought some kids were messing around and hitting a nearby metal building."

Then she heard eight louder shots and tires squealing, she said.

"I was just about to get up and call it in, and I heard sirens," she said. "There's never been a tragedy like this here. There's been individual incidents, but nothing of this magnitude."

Her husband, David Franz, 36, said it was hard to accept that someone in law enforcement committed such an act.

"The first statement we said to each other was, how did he get through the system?" David Franz said. "How do they know somebody's background, especially that young? It is disturbing, to say the least."

The sheriff said he would meet with state Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen on Monday morning to discuss the case. Dennee said the state Department of Criminal Investigation will handle the case because the suspect was a deputy and officer.

The Crandon School District called off classes Monday.

The community, about 225 miles north of Milwaukee in an area known for logging and outdoor activities, is facing a trying time but is pulling together, Bradley said.

"We are a strong community. We always have been," he said. "This is agonizing, but we will prevail."


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[toolman]

I saw this a couple of hrs. ago. My question is, how can a 20 yr. old kid be a sheriff's deputy and a city cop when he isn't even legal to buy his own duty weapon? Doesn't that seem a bit young for such a high-stress\high risk position? Any way you look at it, it's stupid, cowardly, and a waste.

[tommy]

yep that was a very young kid . he wasn't even old enough to buy a beer yet but he was a deputy with a badge and a gun .

[Lng Rng]

That is what I was wondering too. As I was reading the story, I saw that off duty officer was only 20, which sounded very odd to me. I would also like to know why the off duty officer was there in the first place.

[ArkansasHunter]

It is odd that a 20 year old is a cop...Departments should learn a lesson from this !

[cubbieman]

if HS students are stealing your gf you aren't old enough to be a cop

[troy2000]

Originally Posted by cubbieman

if HS students are stealing your gf you aren't old enough to be a cop

Amen.

[Pred]

I thought you had to be 21 years old to be a cop? You can't legally own/carry a handgun until that age right?

[gunney_m]

Yea, exactly 21 to own handgun, first Ive heard of a 20 year old cop.

[troy2000]

You may have to be twenty one to own a handgun, but last I heard you didn't have to be twenty one to shoot one. Or apparently to carry one on-duty...I'd guess he was issued a side-arm, rather than providing his own.

I feel for the guy who had to take this kid down.

[gunney_m]

Of cource, another way around a law.

[tommy]

(The gunman, Tyler Peterson, was 20 years old and worked full-time as a Forest County deputy sheriff and part-time as a Crandon police officer, said Police Chief John Dennee. )

he was actually two cops one full timer and one part timer.i bet when he got off duty his mom had milk and cookies for him.i'm sorry but the last coment was not a joke he just was to young to be a 2 cops.much less one. i wonder if he rode a bike to work?

[Pred]

Oh boy, here we go...

Off-duty deputy used police-style AR-15 rifle to kill six, officials say

So whats a police style AR-15? I think I'm going to go ahead and stock up on stripped lowers over the next few months, along with a few more AK's and SKS's.

[Joe Brainard]

Crandon's about 35 miles down the Highway from where I live. Got everyone in this neck of the woods talking. It's a tragic incident to state the obvious.

[Calvin]

As Troy said, I would have hated to be the one to take this kid down. Unfortunately though, this kid was bought and paid for when he shot those innocent people and he had to be stopped.
That's one unspoken rule among LEO's. If a wayward cop, such as this kid, pulls something like this and shows any sign of aggression towards another officer, the end is swift and just.
The end justifies the means......

[.22guy]

Originally Posted by cubbieman

if HS students are stealing your gf you aren't old enough to be a cop

Well said.

What a senseless waste of life.....

[ezearln]

As sad and senseless as this was and is, I am glad it was resolved quickly. My heart goes out to the officer who had to take this young man down, in a community this small it is highly likely he knew him at the very least on a professional level. Please consider adding both the fallen and their families to your prayers as life is going to get only tougher for them all in the days ahead. God be with them all.

[Lng Rng]

I just saw a report that said it was "unclear" on weather or not the officer did take his life. They seemed to imply the off duty officer commited suicide.

[Apollyon67]

How old do you have to be to kill someone while on duty in the military. Kid? No, he was an adult. Don't pass this off like the people who say that a kid isn't guilty because he was too young to understand what he was doing. He knew very well what he was doing. I recently trained with mostly 18 to 21 year old recruits for Corrections. This was a good bunch of people. There are "full grown adults" I wouldn't trust with a firearm, and I am sure you know some too. It is OK for them to be able to operate a two to three ton lethal weapon in some states at 16? Personal responsibility is being legislated out of life.

[troy2000]

I don't think anyone was denying the kid's personal responsibility, Apollyon67. they were opining that most 20-year-old's aren't ready to be peace officers yet. And i agree with them. Although I'm sure this guy's superiors thought he was the exception to the rule; I doubt they hired him lightly.