crandon

CRANDON, Wis. ― An off-duty deputy sheriff shot six young people to death early Sunday before being killed by authorities in a Wisconsin town so small that it doesn't have traffic lights.

The gunman, Tyler Peterson, 20, a Forest County deputy and part-time officer for the Crandon Police Department, killed three high school students and three recent graduates who had gathered at a home Saturday night to eat pizza and watch films.


Crandon shootings
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Peterson
click to enlargeA seventh victim was in critical condition.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that the victims included Peterson's ex-girlfriend Jordann Murray, 18, who graduated from high school last year.

"Everyone is reeling," said Richard Peters, superintendent of the Crandon School District, who knew the victims of the shooting.

Three of them attended Crandon High School, a school with about 300 students from grades nine to 12. The other three had graduated within the last three years.

"Crandon is small-town America, a close-knit community," Peters said. "No one envisaged anyone in this community would do something like this. We all knew the kids, and they all knew us."

The gunman struck in a two-story duplex about a block from downtown Crandon, a town of about 2,000 residents about a 225-mile drive north from Milwaukee.

Officials disclosed few details of the shootings, and Peterson's motive remained unknown.

The mother of one of the victims, however, told the Associated Press that he may have been a "jealous boyfriend."

Jenny Stahl, 39, identified her daughter, Lindsey, 14, as one of the victims. She said Lindsey called her Saturday night to ask whether she could sleep over at a friend's house.

"I'm waiting for somebody to wake me up right now," Stahl said. "This is a bad, bad dream. All I heard, it was a jealous boyfriend and he went berserk MADISON, Wis. - A 20-year-old lawman shattered the calm of a small logging town in the North Woods of Wisconsin on Sunday morning, crashing a house party and shooting to death six high school students and recent graduates, police said.

A seventh victim remained in critical condition Sunday night in nearby Marshfield, authorities said. A Crandon police officer was treated for minor injuries and released.

The gunman, whom police identified as Tyler Peterson, was later killed after he evaded law-enforcement officials, forcing this town of 2,000 about 225 miles north of Milwaukee to be virtually locked down by police for several hours.



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1 killed, 1 wounded in Southeast Side shooting
Crandon Mayor Gary Bradley said Sunday afternoon that the suspect was dead. "He was brought down by a sniper," Bradley said. However, Forest County Sheriff Keith Van Cleve would not confirm that Peterson had been killed by fellow officers.

Many details were still sketchy late Sunday, but police believe Peterson shot the seven people, ranging in age from 14 to their early 20s, around 3 a.m. in a small downtown home where they had gathered to eat pizza and watch a movie. At least eight people were inside the house at the time of the attack, family members say, after celebrating the local high school's homecoming.

Peterson worked full-time as a Forest County deputy sheriff and part time as a Crandon police officer, said Crandon Police Chief John Dennee, and was not on duty at the time of the shooting.

Police have not released the victims' names but have scheduled a news conference for Monday.

While it was unclear what the gunman's motive was, the mother of one victim said he may have been a jealous boyfriend. "I'm waiting for somebody to wake me up right now," said Jenny Stahl, 39, the mother of 14-year-old Lindsey Stahl, who was killed in the shooting. "This is a bad, bad dream. All I heard it was a jealous boyfriend and he went berserk. He took them all out."

Savannah Cleereman, 14, knew Lindsey and the five others who were killed. "Lindsey was my best friend since 1st grade," she said. "It's just the way she died. She didn't deserve it. None of them deserved to die at all. I had six friends, but they all died."

Cleereman said she had been invited to the same house party but didn't go because she was too tired from an early volleyball meet.

Instead, she and a friend―the sister of a young man at the party―stayed at Cleereman's house together. The two learned of the shooting Sunday morning when Cleereman's friend received text messages on her phone from people saying they were sorry to hear about her brother.

"Then my mom came in and told me that six of my best friends were dead," Cleereman said.

A second victim was Bradley Schultz, 20, a third-year student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee who was home to visit his friends, said his aunt Sharon Pisarek.

"We still don't have many details, but from what they've told us, there was a girl next to him and he was covering her, protecting her," she said, sobbing. "He was loved by everybody. He was everybody's son."

Three of the victims were Crandon High School students, said schools Supt. 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 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."

On Sunday afternoon, Crandon residents gathered inside churches and area stores to talk about what had happened.

With the hymn "The Glory-Land Way" being sung by a congregation behind him, James Crawford, 36, tried to talk in a phone interview about his cousin who was killed. The Tribune is not identifying the cousin because it was not clear whether all family members had been notified about the death. "I just can't believe something like this would have happened here," he said.

Twenty-five people met for hours inside the Church of Christ in Crandon, which Crawford attends.

Earlier Sunday, Crawford had learned of his cousin's death when he awoke to a phone call from family members: His teenage cousin, "who wouldn't have hurt a fly," had died in a shooting that had happened only three blocks away.

And just when he went outside for a front-yard discussion with his neighbors, they learned from police that their child, who had been at the party, was dead, he said.

Crandon is a small lumber town where residents don't know the street names, but "tell directions by where who lives next to who," said Bud Evans, 46, an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church, where victims' families met throughout the afternoon.

People are starting to talk about how to heal this week. Dozens of families were gathering Sunday night at the church. "To heal," Evans said, "you just have to start on your knees
CHURCH ELDER ASKS FOR PRAYERS AFTER SHOOTING RAMPAGE CRANDON, Wis. (AP) "Just keep us in your prayers." That's the request of a church elder in Crandon, Wisconsin, where an off-duty sheriff's deputy went on a shooting rampage early Sunday, killing six people and critically injuring a seventh.

The 20-year-old suspect was then fatally shot by authorities.

The victims also were young. Praise Chapel Community Church elder Bud Evans says "they're all good kids" and some had attended the church.

Evans requested prayers "for forgiveness and understanding." The Crandon School District canceled Monday classes.

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Bud Evans, an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, Wisconsin, in AP interview Bud Evans, who's an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, says his Church will help the community move forward.

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:10 "a time" Bud Evans, an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, Wisconsin, in AP interview Bud Evans, who's an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, says prayer is very important now.

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:04 "or so" Bud Evans, an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, Wisconsin, in AP interview Bud Evans, who's an elder at Praise Chapel Community Church in Crandon, says he knew all of the victims.

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:12 "about it"


DIRECTOR OF CHRISTIAN BOOKSTORE KILLED IN GAZA GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) The killing of a prominent Palestinian Christian has sent a shudder of fear through Gaza's tiny Christian community, which has felt increasingly insecure since the Islamic Hamas seized control there last summer.

The body of Rami Khader Ayyad, the 32-year-old director of Gaza's only Christian bookstore, was found on a Gaza City street early Sunday. The body bore a visible gunshot wound to the head, and a hospital official said he was also stabbed numerous times.

Ayyad's store, the Teacher's Bookshop, is associated with the Palestinian Bible Society. Ayyad regularly received anonymous death threats and the bookstore was firebombed in April.

A Bible Society spokesman in Jerusalam says, "We feel Rami was killed for his Christian faith."


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Mark Lavie (lah-VEE'), AP correspondent A prominent Palestinian Christian has been murdered in Gaza. More from AP correspondent Mark Lavie (lah-VEE').

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:29 Mark Lavie (lah-VEE'), AP correspondent AP correspondent Mark Lavie (lah-VEE') reports that the director of Gaza's only Christian bookstore has been killed.

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:11 "of violence" Mark Lavie (lah-VEE'), AP correspondent AP correspondent Mark Lavie (lah-VEE') reports that Gaza's small Christian community has been feeling increasingly besieged.

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BRITISH PRIESTS ADVISED TO REMOVE COLLARS TO AVERT ATTACKS LONDON (AP) The head of a British church safety group says Anglican and Roman Catholic priests should remove their clerical collars while off-duty to avoid being singled out for attack.

Nick Tolson of National Churchwatch says British criminals often target ministers because they are perceived to have money.

He blames dwindling church attenDance for diluting the respect once accorded to clergy.

Tolson says clerical collars also can attract those bearing a "grudge against God." The Church of England said it welcomed the advice but noted that church rules say "clergy should dress as clergy."


Washington RALLY DRAWS AN ESTIMATED 20-THOUSAND CHRISTIAN MEN WASHINGTON (AP) Organizers of Saturday's "Stand in the Gap" rally in Washington say about 20-thousand men gathered to renew their Christian commitment and pass it on to the next generation.

The gathering was held on the grounds of the Washington Monument ten years after the 1997 Promise Keepers event that drew an estimated one million men to the National Mall.

At "Stand in the Gap," the theme was "Return, Remember, Renew and Rebuild." Organizers expressed hope that non-Christian tourists also were influenced by the music and speakers they unexpectedly encountered.

LEADING CONSERVATIVE WARNS THAT MANY CHRISTIANS WON'T SUPPORT GIULIANI LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) The president of the Family Research Council says he and other Christian conservative leaders have agreed that they won't support Rudy Giuliani or any other presidential candidate who supports abortion rights.

Tony Perkins told CBS's "Face the Nation" that a recent Rasmussen poll suggests 27 percent of Republican voters would support a third-party anti-abortion candidate as an alternative to Rudy Giuliani and Hillary CLinton.

But Perkins said talk of a third party is premature, since a straw poll of Christian conservatives later this month could help boost the candidacy of one of Giuliani's rivals.

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Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, in interview Family Research Council president Tony Perkins says he and other Christian conservatives cannot support GOP presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani. COURTESY: CBS's 'Face the Nation' ((mandatory on-air credit)) CUT ..210 (10/07/07)


:14 "with them (second reference)" Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, in interview Family Research Council president Tony Perkins says a recent Rasmussen poll pitted Hillary Clinton against Rudy Giuliani and a third party anti-abortion candidate. COURTESY: CBS's 'Face the Nation' ((mandatory on-air credit)) CUT ..211 (10/07/07)


:07 "the party" Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, in interview Family Research Council president Tony Perkins says the Republican party can't afford to lose the support of Christian conservatives.

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:16 "impaling itself" Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, in interview Family Research Council president Tony Perkins says his group could boost the presidential candidacy of one of Giuliani's GOP rivals.

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:14 "and pro-family"


OBAMA ADDRESSES WORSHIPERS FROM CHURCH PULPIT GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) White House hopeful Barack Obama has told thousands of worshipers at a church in South Carolina that faith is what motivates him, guides him and keeps him grounded.

The Illinois Democratic senator spoke from the pulpit Sunday at Greenville's Redemption World Outreach Center, and asked members to pray for him and his family.

Last week, Obama attended services at a black Baptist church in West Columbia and a white Baptist church a few miles away in Columbia.

His campaign is in the midst of what it calls "40 Days of Faith and Family" an effort to introduce early voting South Carolina to how Obama's family life and faith have shaped his values.

KENTUCKY GOVERNOR AND CHALLENGER RUNNING ADS ON CHRISTIAN RADIO FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) Both sides in the Kentucky governor's race are advertising on Christian radio stations.

The ad for Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher, an ordained Baptist minister, criticizes Democratic challenger Steve Beshear for an opinion Beshear wrote while serving as attorney general.

Beshear advised school officials that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling required them to remove displays of the Ten Commandments from classroom walls.

In Beshear's ad, he simply introduces himself to listeners, telling them that he grew up singing in church every Sunday and that his father and grandfather were ministers. He tells listeners that his Christian upbringing molded his values.

SERVICE HELD TO HONOR THE LATE TAMMY FAYE MESSNER DECATUR, Ga. (AP) More than two months after Tammy Faye Messner died of colon cancer, friends and family members have celebrated her life at a Georgia church service.

About 150 people gathered at the Cathedral at Chapel Hill outside Atlanta, whose leaders have a close relationship with Messner's relatives.

In the mid-1980s, Tammy Faye and her then husband Jim Bakker ruled a multi-million dollar ministry that claimed 500,000 followers before it collapsed in disgrace. She was never charged with a crime, but a handful of protesters stood near the cathedral, mocking those attending the service.

Inside the church, Messner's grandson said that wouldn't have bothered her. He said, even "if you thought she was the most disgusting thing in the world, she still loved you."


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CHURCH MARRIAGE SEMINAR MAILOUT SCANDALIZES RECIPIENTS SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. (AP) A church trying to draw people to a marriage seminar has created a scandal instead by sending out hundreds of postcards with red lips and the words "Red Hot Sex." The mailing from The Gaterhing church in Sevierville, Tennessee, invites residents to hear pastor Gene Wolfenbarger and his wife reveal what the Bible says about sex in marriage in a series of four classes.

Class titles include "Sex! What Makes It Red Hot" and "Honey I Don't have A Headache." One local resident said she had never received anything that suggestive in the mail before.

Wolfenbarger apologized to anyone who was offended, but said the mailing was meant to attract attention in a time when the American family is being destroyed by illicit sex.

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MORMON LEADERS DEFEND THEIR FAITH SALT LAKE CITY (AP) From its president on down, leaders of the Mormon church have used their faith's fall conference to highlight their beliefs and insist that they're a Christian church.

Jeffrey Holland, a member of the Mormons' governing board, said the church's growth to more than 13 million members and the presidential candidacy of Mitt Romney have brought increased public attention to a faith that's not well understood.

Church President Gordon Hinckley acknowledged that the Mormon faith is "unique" and said Mormons should celebrate that.

Mormon theology disavows the doctrine of the Trinity and teaches that the Book of Mormon is a divinely inspired scripture recording Christ's work in the ancient Americas.

Hinckley said critics have ridiculed the Mormon faith, but it has outlived them all, and grown.