Here is a selection of workplace incidents that took place in the one-year period of March 1995 through April 1996. This

represents only a small sampling of the lethal incidents that occured in the American workplace during that period.

April 25, 1996, Jackson, Mississippi - A 32-year-old fireman shot his wife through the head and then proceeded to a

firehouse armed with several weapons. Using an assault rifle, the fireman shot 6 coworkers, all supervisors, killing 4 of

them and seriously wounding another two. He then fled the scene and led police on a wild chase for 10 miles. At the end

of the chase he exchanged gunfire with a police officer, who he wounded, before being shot in the head himself and

critically injured. The president of the union representing the shooter described him as "a time bomb waiting to go off."

February 9, 1996, Fort Lauderdale, FL - Shouting "everyone is going to die," a fired Fort Lauderdale maintenance

employee walked into a meeting of his former co-workers today and began shooting, killing five people and injuring

another before turning the gun on himself. Police said Clifton McCree, 41, was fired in 1994 after testing positive for drugs

and threatening co-workers. The employees were inside a temporary trailer office when McCree showed up with two

handguns. Police say he chased workers around the office and shot them methodically, pausing only to reload. One

employee, a woman, escaped without injury. (Reuters)

February 6, 1996, Honolulu, HI - John Miranda, an employee at Seal Master of Hawaii, returned to his former workplace

after being fired from his job last week. He held five coworkers hostage, including his former boss--some for up to six

hours. During the incident Miranda shot and seriously wounded his former supervisor. Miranda was eventually killed by

police after holding a shotgun to the head of one coworker for several hours while negotiating with officers. Prior to being

shot by police, Miranda threatened to kill the coworker by starting a "countdown" to pulling the trigger of the shotgun. This

prompted the hostage to grab the barrel of the gun and gave police the opportunity to shoot Miranda who died of his

wounds.

January 29, 1996, Waterville, ME - A former mental patient accused of beating and stabbing four nuns, killing two of them,

had been turned down for a job at their convent just last week. Police said they found Mark A. Bechard in the convent's

chapel Saturday evening, standing over one the nuns and beating her with a religious figurine. Officers said they had to

pull him off of the woman, and that he also beat and stabbed three others in an adjacent part of the convent. Nuns at the

convent of the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament said Bechard had applied for a job last week but was turned down.

Bechard had expressed interest in doing odd jobs at the convent. Nuns had just finished a prayer service Saturday

evening when an intruder smashed the glass on a locked door, opened it and walked inside. Mother Superior Edna Mary

Cardozo, 68, died late Saturday at Kennebec Valley Medical Center in Augusta, and Sister Mary Julien Fortin, 67, died early

Sunday, a hospital spokeswoman said. An autopsy by the state's deputy chief medical examiner determined that the

women died from "multiple blunt force injuries of the head." Bechard, 37, a local man was charged with murder and jailed

without bail pending an arraignment later today. Police had no motive for the attacks, but Bechard had a history of mental

problems and had previous run-ins with the law. He was involuntarily committed to a mental hospital in 1994. Bechard

was described as an accomplished musician who had played trumpet in a local jazz combo and studied at the University

of Maine at Augusta. (Reuters report, edited for brevity)

January 29, 1996, Johannesburg, South Africa - South African gunmen killed eight work-seekers and wounded 23 today

in a brutal attack possibly motivated by jealousy over jobs, union officials and the ruling African National Congress (ANC)

said. Police said several men, armed with assault rifles and handguns, opened fire outside the N F Die-Casting factory at

Alrode, a few miles from the city center. ``It was savage...we expect the death toll to rise,'' Police Superintendent Wikus

Weber told Reuters. He said some of the wounded were very badly hurt. (Reuters report)

December 15, 1995, Evendale, OH - Gerald Clemons, 53, of Clevland, returned to the Trans-Continental Systems offices

from which he had been recently fired. Brandishing two pistols, Clemons shot and killed three employees and wounded a

fourth. A witness stated Clemons was "going after someone who had screwed him over." After the murders Clemons

surrendered quietly to authorities.

December 8, 1995, Harlem, NY - A man who was apparently involved in protesting the closure of a Radio Shack store

enters the master-tenant's clothing store with a gun and arson materials. He immediately sets the store on fire and

begins shooting at workers in the clothing store. Eight individuals are killed (including the perpetrator) and another four

are wounded (three seriously, by gunfire).

November 19/20, 1995, Columbus, OH - Jerry Hessler, 38, was fired from his job at a bank credit card center in October

1994 following charges of sexual harassment against coworkers. On this Sunday evening, a year later, he forced his way

into at least two homes of former coworkers, fatally shooting four individuals (including a 4-month-old girl) and wounding

two others. Hessler was captured by police attempting to flee the city in his automobile.

October 21, 1995, Carmel, IN - A man enters the bank office where his wife works, chases others from the scene and

then shoots and kills her, later committing suicide with the same weapon ("spill-over violence").

October 12, 1995, Blackville, SC - One high school teacher was left dead and a second critically wounded after a student,

who had been expelled, returned to the school building and starting shooting before turning the gun on himself,

committing suicide. The killer was a 16 year old Caucasian male, the dead teacher a 56 year old Caucasian female. This

case is somewhat exceptional due to the age of the perpetrator, although this type of crime is becoming more prevalent.

October 7, 1995, San Jose, CA - A young accountant, only on the job for six weeks, shot and killed his female supervisor,

then committed suicide with the same gun, one day after receiving his first performance counseling session. The killer

was a 28 year old Asian male, the victim a 32 year old Caucasian female. Little is known of this case. It could benefit from

additional research.

August 29, 1995, Palantine, IL - A postal worker reported to work with a handgun and shot two coworkers who he claimed

were his friends. The shooter was a 53 year old Caucasian male who had worked at that same location for about twenty

years and had "an exemplary service record." This has become almost a "classic" scenario for the U.S. Postal Service.

August 24, 1995, Sacramento, CA - A study released today in Sacramento stated that 601 workers died on the job in

California during 1994. The second leading cause of death in 1994 was homicide. Due to the way in which these

statistics are gathered, the number of homicides as reported by the State of California is thought to be low. See "New

Arenas for Violence" for a discussion about the accuracy of this type of data gathering.

July 19, 1995, Los Angeles, CA - A city electrician with a 12 year work history shot and killed four of his supervisors when

he learned he was facing possible dismissal for poor work performance. After the shooting the killer, 42 years old, quietly

waited for police to arrive and arrest him. He was heard saying that he had specifically targeted the four murdered

individuals because he "felt he was being picked on and singled out" by them. Once again, a familiar incident. This is the

type of incident which lends itself to prevention and intervention methodologies.

July 10, 1995, City of Industry, CA - A "quiet, unassuming" postal worker who had been on the job for 22 years shot and

killed his supervisor. The perpetrator was 58 years old and was easily disarmed by coworkers after the shooting. The

victim was 50 years old. Once again, the U.S. Postal Service!

May 18, 1995, Asheville, NC - A "classic loner" just fired from his job at a machine tool company returned the next with a

rifle and a pistol. The perpetrator, 47 years old, killed three workers and wounded another four before quietly surrendering

to police. This case requires additional research.

April 29, 1995, Littleton, CO - A man distraught over marital problems opened fire in a crowded grocery store, killing three

people (including his wife) before he was subdued by a bystander. The perpetrator was a 35 year old Caucasian. Among

the victims was his wife, age 37 and the store manager, age 39. This type of incident is becoming more common in recent

years. It is often referred to as "spill-over" violence.

April 27, 1995, Richmond, CA - After a Richmond Housing Authority employee is fired from his job he returns to his

automobile, retrieves a handgun and returns to shoot and kill a supervisor and a coworker. The perpetrator is 38 years

old, both victims are females, aged 47 and 24 years. Once again, this incident should have been preventable.

April 4, 1995, Corpus Christi, TX - A former employee, 28 years old, walked into a refinery inspection company and killed

five workers with a handgun before turning it on himself. He was carrying a 9mm semiautomatic pistol and a .32-caliber

revolver. Insufficient information is available about the perpetrator's real motives in this case.

March 21, 1995, Montclair, NJ - Two clients and two workers were shot to death in an attempted robbery by a formal

postal service employee. The attempted robbery may have been a retaliator strike against the former employer.

March 12, 1995, Arlington, VA - A civilian Navy employee shot his boss and a coworker in their workplace before

committing suicide with the same handgun. Insufficient information is known about this case.

March 3, 1995, Seattle, WA - A 47 year old Caucasian male shot and killed his pregnant wife and two of her friends who

were waiting to testify at his annulment hearing outside a Seattle courtroom. Once again, this is a case of "spill-over"

violence. One must wonder, though, about courtroom security in Seattle.