'Active shooter' incidents on the rise

The number of incidents in which a shooter opens fire on a crowd of people more than doubled over the past seven years compared with the previous seven, the FBI found in a study made public Wednesday.The Federal Bureau of Investigation analyzed 160 "active shooter" incidents from 2000 through 2013 to look for common elements that might guide law enforcement officers in preventing the shootings or responding more effectively.

The study found an average of six incidents per year from 2000 through 2006. The number rose to 16 incidents annually in the past seven years. The 160 incidents studied began with the Dec. 26, 2000, shooting at Edgewater Technology in Wakefield, Mass., when Michael McDermott, 42, armed with several weapons, shot seven of his co-workers to death. Police found him sitting in a conference room. Researchers also examined the shootings at Case Western Reserve University, ConAgra, Red Lake High School, Fort Hood, Virginia Tech, the U.S. Holocaust Museum and Sandy Hook Elementary School, among others.

The FBI study defined "active shooters" as a person or people "actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people" in a "populated area." That is different from mass shooting incidents, which include any shooting in which more than three people are killed. It also excluded domestic violence and drug and gang-related violence. Of the 160 incidents studied, 64 fit the federal definition of mass killing.


Active shooter story from USA Today