On August 20, 1986, in the quiet city of Edmond, Oklahoma, a horrific act of violence unfolded that would claim the life of 33-year-old Paul Michael Rockne. A letter carrier for the United States Postal Service, Rockne was one of fourteen people killed in a mass shooting at his place of work. The gunman was his 44-year-old coworker, Patrick Sherrill.
The day before the shooting, Sherrill had been reprimanded by two supervisors for his poor performance.
The following morning, shortly after 7:00 a.m., he entered the post office armed with three pistols and a mailbag full of ammunition. He first targeted and killed one of the supervisors who had disciplined him. He then looked for the second supervisor, Bill Bland, but Bland had overslept and was not yet at work. It was then that Sherrill encountered and fatally shot Paul Michael Rockne.
Over the next fifteen minutes, Sherrill moved through the building, shooting at his colleagues. In total, he killed fourteen people and injured six others. The rampage ended when Sherrill took his own life with a gunshot to the head as police were entering the post office. The tragic event, which became known as the Edmond post office shooting, was, at the time, the deadliest workplace shooting in U.S. history and gave rise to the phrase 'going postal.'
Paul Michael Rockne was the grandson of the legendary Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne. His death was part of a senseless act of violence that left a lasting scar on the Edmond community and the nation. The perpetrator, Patrick Sherrill, was the sole suspect, and his suicide concluded the criminal aspect of the case.
