Wesley Higdon and the 2008 Atlantis Plastics Factory Shooting
Overview
Wesley Neal Higdon was a 25-year-old factory employee who carried out a deadly workplace shooting at the Atlantis Plastics manufacturing plant in Henderson, Kentucky. During the early morning hours of June 25, 2008, Higdon fatally shot five employees and critically wounded another before taking his own life. Six people, including Higdon, died in the attack.
The shooting occurred at approximately 12:20 a.m. inside and immediately outside the Atlantis Plastics injection-molding facility. About 160 employees were reportedly working at the plant when the violence began. The sudden gunfire caused workers to flee, hide behind machinery, or seek shelter in offices and other areas of the building.
Wesley Higdon
Higdon lived in Henderson and had worked at Atlantis Plastics since late 2007. Accounts from people familiar with him described a troubled employee who had experienced disciplinary problems at work. Before the shooting, he had reportedly been reprimanded for matters that included excessive cell-phone use, failing to wear required safety glasses, and failing to report damage to a restroom towel rack.
Higdon also had misdemeanor convictions involving marijuana possession and driving under the influence. Nothing in his known criminal history, however, indicated that he was preparing to commit a mass killing.
Conflict at the Factory
On the night of June 24 and the early morning of June 25, Higdon became involved in a dispute with fellow employee Joshua Hinojosa. The disagreement reportedly continued at a convenience store located across the street from the factory. When management learned about the confrontation, supervisor Kevin G. Taylor intervened.
Taylor reprimanded Higdon and instructed him to leave the workplace. He then escorted Higdon from the building. Rather than leaving the property, Higdon walked to his truck and retrieved a .45-caliber Hi-Point Model JHP semiautomatic pistol.
Police later learned that approximately two hours before the shooting, Higdon had telephoned his girlfriend and said that he intended to kill his supervisor. She did not alert police, the factory, or Higdon's intended target before the attack began.
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