Strozier Shooting
The following is my account of the shooting at Florida State University's
Strozier Library on 20 November 2014
12:25am
A Facebook status reporting 12 gunshots heard outside of Strozier library is posted. Immediately I wake up my roommate. We turn on the TV looking for any news coverage we can find, with no results. My mind goes numb as my thoughts bounce around playing every possible situation through in my head. What about my friends? I know ____ had a big test tomorrow. What if she was victimized? We are in shock of what may have just happened and who it may have happened to.
I make a realization that we need this covered. I have no choice but to turn off all emotions and get to work. Rushing to the scene I can hear the sirens. I can see blue lights reflecting in the night sky from across campus. With a hollow feeling throughout my body I walk across Landis Green towards the south side of Strozier Library. Officers are taping off the scene. As I walk closer I am immediately approached by authorities who begin asking who I am, where I live, and why I am there. I explained. I was then instructed to get what I needed and to leave as soon as possible. With this in mind, I approach the east side of the library where most of the police activity is occurring. There had to be at least 40 emergency vehicles. To my right an ambulance is speeding away. To my left stand two officers looking at the ground with their flashlight shining. My eyes follow the beams of the flashlights down to the ground where there lay the body of a man. Instinctively I raise my camera and snap a photograph, not realizing that I had just captured a photo of the deceased gunman.
Upon the realization of the gravity of the situation, now knowing that at least one was killed, I headed home in order to have an urgent turnaround on these photos for our publication as my only thoughts were that WE needed to break the story; WE needed this coverage first. I had completely turned off the student and frankly the human being that had always been a part of me. It would remain that way for 20 hours longer. All that mattered was the coverage, the photos, and the story. Almost immediately after arriving at home and having my byline online with the breaking story, the media bombarded me via Twitter, text, call, and Facebook requesting interviews, photos, and information. I started answering and replying to these best I could. The next four hours would be spent live on CNN and BBC. My name, voice, words, and photos are literally worldwide. This was the story I had been waiting for my entire career.
5:30am
The first organized press conference is to be held in 30 minutes at approximately 6:00 a.m. on the second floor of the Florida State Police Department building, just blocks from the scene. The media throws question after question at the officers. There was no information to give with how recent the events were.
We all headed our separate ways for two short hours before we returned to our on campus office in order to keep the coverage for the students flowing.
10:00am
We report to the Legacy Statue at Landis Green right in front of the crime scene for a short vigil in honor of the morning’s events. For the next five hours we had seven people packed in one small, windowless room with our laptops doing everything we could to get information, post updates, conduct interviews, etc. During this time we discovered the name of the gunman. We collectively and unanimously decided that we would NOT publish or share the identity of the gunman under any circumstances. We do not believe in glorifying the shooter, but instead sympathizing for the victims, their families, and the entire Florida State community.
The Tallahassee Police Department and the Florida State Police Department announced the identity of the gunman at their 3:00 p.m. press conference.
5:00pm
Thousands of students, faculty, and community members gathered around the Integration Statue on campus for a candlelight vigil for unity. A very moving and emotional event this was as the Marching Chiefs softly played the Alma Mater and the Hymn of the Garnet and Gold. The noise died down and then you could hear the War Chant slowly start to ring in your ears. Eventually the entire crowd and the chiefs had joined in. It was different though. This was not a chant for a football team. This was a chant for family, friends, classmates, teachers, students, and community. This was a classical piece of music.
9:30pm
The time rolls around that we essentially call it a day, 21 hours later for most of us. The environment in the office started to become more casual. A smile was seen; a laugh was heard. Hell had ended for the moment.
I headed home in the quiet of my car, no music, no talking, just silence. With no sounds to hide behind, my humanity had returned; I broke down in tears as what had happened suddenly became real to me. It was personal. My home, shelter, and campus had been violated.
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