Joseph Wesbecker

Mass Murderer

Joseph Wesbecker and the 1989 Standard Gravure Massacre

Background

Joseph Thomas "Rocky" Wesbecker was a 47-year-old printing-press operator who carried out a mass shooting at the Standard Gravure printing plant in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 14, 1989. He killed eight people, wounded twelve others, and then died by suicide inside the plant. The attack became one of the deadliest workplace shootings in American history at the time and remains among the most devastating acts of mass violence in Kentucky history. Wesbecker was born on April 27, 1942. His father died in a construction accident when Wesbecker was an infant, and his early childhood was reportedly unstable. He left school after the ninth grade but later obtained a high-school equivalency diploma. He began working in the printing industry in 1960 and joined Standard Gravure in 1971. For years, coworkers regarded him as an experienced and dependable pressman, although his behavior and emotional condition became increasingly troubled.

Employment Problems and Deteriorating Mental Health

Standard Gravure operated a large printing facility near Sixth Street and Broadway in downtown Louisville. The plant produced newspaper advertising inserts and other printed material. Wesbecker worked around heavy, fast-moving presses in a noisy and demanding environment. He complained that one of the machines he was assigned to operate placed him under severe pressure and aggravated his psychological problems. During the years before the massacre, Wesbecker experienced depression, anger, paranoia, suicidal thoughts, and growing resentment toward Standard Gravure. He underwent psychiatric treatment and was hospitalized on several occasions. He told doctors and other people that he was having violent thoughts, and coworkers later recalled that he had threatened to return to the plant and harm supervisors or employees. He reportedly maintained a list of people against whom he held grievances. Wesbecker was placed on disability leave from Standard Gravure in 1988. Although he was not actively working at the plant when the shooting occurred, he continued to blame the company and certain managers for many of his problems. His anger appeared to be directed particularly toward company leadership and supervisors, but the people he ultimately shot included managers, office workers, pressroom employees, tradesmen, and coworkers who had no known personal dispute with him.

Weapons and Preparation

Before the attack, Wesbecker obtained several firearms and a large quantity of ammunition. His principal weapon was a Chinese-manufactured Poly Technologies AK-47S semiautomatic rifle. He also carried a SIG Sauer P226 9-millimeter pistol. A duffel bag contained two MAC-11-style firearms, a Smith & Wesson Model 12 .38-caliber revolver, a bayonet, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. The quantity of weapons and ammunition indicated that the massacre was planned rather than spontaneous. Wesbecker arrived equipped to move through the building and continue firing for an extended period. Investigators later searched his home and recovered additional firearms, written material, and his will. ...

Confirmed Victims: (9)

Richard Dickie Barger 54 yr old Male

Standard Gravure shooting - Wikipedia