NC Raleigh mass shooting: Family, friends mourn victims killed
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Five people died and two others were critically injured Thursday evening in a mass shooting in Raleigh.
Raleigh Police Department said Friday morning that these five people were the victims who died in the shooting:
- Nicole Connors, 52
- Susan Karnatz, 49
- Mary Marshall, 35
- Gabriel Torres, 29
- James Thompson, 16
These three others were injured:
- Marcille Gardner, 59
- Casey Joseph Clark, 33,
- The 15-year-old shooting suspect
Nicole Connors
Nicole Connors' husband, Tracey Howard, told ABC11 that he found his wife and his dog, Sammy, both shot dead on the front porch. A neighbor was injured and lying on the ground next to them.
"Disbelief, feel like we just walking through a daze right now," Howard said. "She was a fine loving person. Bubbly, everybody in the neighborhood knew her."
Howard is in disbelief that his 15-year-old neighbor is the person investigators say killed his wife.
"I can't believe he would do something like that. We never had any interactions with the kid, no beef with him or anything like that. I don't know what happened."
Susan Karnatz
Karnatz was married and had three sons aged 10, 13 and 14. She was also an avid runner who frequently ran on the
Her husband, Tom Karnatz, posted a heartbreaking message on Facebook about all the plans they had together and how they'd been "laid to waste."
Mary Marshall
Marshall was engaged to be married. She was also just 10 days shy of her 35th birthday.
Her fiancé, Robert Steele, said she was shot and killed while walking their dog.
"She was really nice, always pleasant. Whenever we got packages when we weren't at home, she would put them in our house and leave a note on the door. Go above, you know?" neighbor Sherron McDonald said of Marshall.
James Thompson
The 16-year-old victim, James Thompson, was a junior at Knightdale High School.
"This is an incredibly difficult time for our school community as well as the broader Raleigh community," Principal Keith Richardson wrote in a statement to parents. He went on to say counselors and the District Crisis Team would be available on campus for the next week to support anyone who needs assistance.
Gabriel Torres
Torres was an off-duty officer who previously served as a Marine. He was getting ready to begin his shift with Raleigh Police Department when he was killed.
Torres was also a husband and a father to a young daughter.
"This is an extremely, extremely painful event for our officers and me," RPD Chief Estella Patterson said. "I was immediately taken aback, shocked by what occurred."
ABC11 crews are gathering more details about all of the victims and will continue to update this article and share their stories during our evening newscasts.
"There are several families in our community waking up this morning without their loved ones," Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said. "No one can imagine what they're all going through."
Investigators said the 15-year-old shooting suspect is a male.
SEE ALSO: What we know about the 15-year-old suspect
Investigators said he started shooting around 5 p.m. Thursday near the Neuse River Greenway in the Hedingham neighborhood near Osprey Cove Drive and Bay Harbor Drive.
The terror of an active shooting situation lasted several hours, with police roping off a two-mile scene to contain the situation.
Shortly after 9:30 p.m., the 15-year-old was taken into custody at Old Milburnie Road and McConnel Oliver Drive. He had life-threatening injuries when he was brought in -- by Friday morning, investigators said he was in critical condition at WakeMed.
