Samuel Cassidy

Mass Murderer

Samuel Cassidy: The 2021 San Jose VTA Mass Murder

Overview

On May 26, 2021, 57-year-old VTA employee Samuel James Cassidy carried out a mass shooting at the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) Guadalupe light-rail yard in San Jose, California, killing nine coworkers before dying by suicide. It is the deadliest mass shooting in the history of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Time, Place, and Sequence

The attack unfolded shortly after 6:30 a.m. Pacific Time during the start of the workday. Law enforcement received the first 911 calls at approximately 6:34 a.m. from the VTA facility at 101 West Younger Avenue, San Jose. Deputies arrived within minutes and activated the county’s active-shooter protocol. In the minutes surrounding the shooting, a separate emergency was dispatched: a house fire at Cassidy’s residence on Angmar Court, later confirmed to be his home. Officials reported that the fire call came in around 6:36 a.m.

Method and Weapons

Investigators determined that Cassidy set his home ablaze before driving to the rail yard. According to sheriff’s officials, he ignited the house by placing ammunition inside a pot on a lit stove and surrounding it with accelerants—an apparent timed arson intended to coincide with the shooting. At the rail yard, Cassidy used three semiautomatic handguns and fired 39 rounds while targeting coworkers across multiple buildings. ...Read More

Confirmed Victims: (9)

Paul Delacruz Megia 42 yr old Male

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Behavioral Threat Assessment of Samuel James Cassidy

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