Patrick Purdy

Mass Murderer

Stockton Schoolyard Shooting by Patrick Edward Purdy — January 17, 1989

Overview

Patrick Edward Purdy, a 24-year-old drifter, returned to Cleveland Elementary School in Stockton, California—the school he had once attended—and carried out a mass shooting on January 17, 1989. He parked a vehicle behind the school and set it ablaze with a Molotov cocktail, causing an explosion. He then entered the playground carrying a semi-automatic Norinco Type 56 rifle (AK-47 variant) and fired indiscriminately at children and a teacher. He discharged over 100 rounds in about three minutes before turning a pistol on himself and dying by suicide.

Timeline and Details

- At approximately 11:40 a.m., Purdy arrived at Cleveland Elementary, parked his station wagon behind the school, and shortly thereafter ignited it with a Molotov cocktail, causing an explosion. - Around 11:41 a.m., he began firing on the playground, where roughly 300 children were at recess. - He sprayed the area with bullets in a sweeping motion, shooting more than 100 rounds (often reported as 105 or 106 rounds) in about three minutes. - After the shooting, he fatally shot himself with a 9 mm pistol.

Victims

• Rathanar Or, 9 years old — killed
• Ram Chun, 6 years old — killed
• Sokhim An, 6 years old — killed
• Oeun Lim, 8 years old — killed
• Thuy Tran, 6 years old — killed
• Approximately 30 other students — wounded
• One second-grade teacher (Janet Geng) — wounded

All five children were of Southeast Asian refugee families (four Cambodian, one Vietnamese). ...Read More

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Sokhim An 6 yr old Female

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Stockton schoolyard shooting - Wikipedia

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