James Daniel Simpson and the 1995 Walter Rossler Company Massacre
Background
James Daniel Simpson was a 28-year-old former employee of the Walter Rossler Company, a small refinery inspection and metallurgy business located at 2535 Rand Morgan Road in Corpus Christi, Texas. On April 3, 1995, Simpson returned to the workplace carrying two handguns and murdered five people before taking his own life.
Simpson had worked for the company for approximately one year as a metalworker. He reportedly wanted to concentrate exclusively on metallurgy, but his employers expected him to perform additional inspection-related duties. Simpson apparently became increasingly dissatisfied with those assignments and abruptly left the company in September 1994, approximately seven months before the massacre.
Company owner Walter Rossler reportedly attempted to persuade Simpson to return to work. Employees Derek Harrison and Richard Tomlinson were also sent to Simpson's residence to speak with him, but Simpson refused to resume his employment. The company later sought repayment of money that had reportedly been loaned to Simpson for educational expenses. Investigators examined these employment and financial disagreements as possible contributing factors, but authorities never established a definitive motive.
The April 3, 1995 Attack
At approximately 4:15 to 4:30 p.m. on Monday, April 3, 1995, Simpson entered the front door of the Walter Rossler Company. He was armed with a 9mm Ruger semiautomatic pistol and a .32-caliber revolver. Approximately ten people were inside the building when the attack began.
Simpson first approached the office occupied by employee Patty June “Wendy” Brunson Gilmore. According to surviving witness Lisa Rossler-Duff, Simpson directed a hostile remark toward Gilmore and immediately fired several shots. Gilmore was fatally wounded.
Simpson then crossed the narrow hallway and continued firing at other people inside the business. Walter Rossler, his wife Joann Rossler, Derek Harrison and Richard Lee Tomlinson were all shot. The rapid succession of gunfire gave employees little opportunity to understand what was happening or escape from the confined office building.
Some of those present managed to flee without being injured. Two people reportedly escaped by crawling through or near the rear doorway. Others concealed themselves in offices and beneath furniture as Simpson moved through the building.
Lisa Rossler-Duff and Her Infant Son
Walter and Joann Rossler's daughter, Lisa Rossler-Duff, was working inside the building with her eight-month-old son nearby. After seeing her father fall, she hid beneath a table with the baby and called 911.
During the emergency call, Simpson entered the office where Lisa and her child were hiding. Lisa believed that she had secured the door and shouted when Simpson appeared. Her infant son was crying, but Simpson did not shoot either of them. He turned away and left the room.
Why Simpson spared Lisa and the child remains unknown. His decision allowed one of the principal witnesses to provide investigators with an account of the attack and Simpson's movements inside the company offices.
Victims
- Walter Rossler, 62 — Killed on April 3, 1995, inside the Walter Rossler Company at 2535 Rand Morgan Road in Corpus Christi, Texas. Rossler was the owner of the business.
- Joann Rossler, 61 — Killed on April 3, 1995, at the Walter Rossler Company in Corpus Christi. She was Walter Rossler's wife and was present in the office when Simpson opened fire.
- Patty June “Wendy” Brunson Gilmore, 41 — Killed on April 3, 1995, in her office at the Walter Rossler Company. Witnesses indicated that she was the first person deliberately confronted and shot by Simpson.
- Derek Harrison, 35 — Killed on April 3, 1995, inside the Walter Rossler Company. Harrison had reportedly been among the employees previously asked to speak with Simpson and encourage him to return to work.
- Richard Lee Tomlinson, 34 — Fatally shot on April 3, 1995, at the Walter Rossler Company. Tomlinson had also reportedly participated in efforts to persuade Simpson to return to his former position.
Simpson's Suicide
After shooting the five victims, Simpson left the building through the rear exit. He then used one of his weapons to shoot himself in the head outside the business.
Emergency personnel transported Simpson to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead approximately one hour later. One of his victims was also transported for emergency treatment but died from the injuries. The remaining victims were pronounced dead at or near the crime scene.
The attack ended without a confrontation between Simpson and police. Because Simpson died immediately after the murders and left no publicly documented explanation, investigators were unable to question him about his intentions, the selection of his victims or the reason he spared several other people.
Investigation and Possible Motive
Investigators found no single conclusive motive for the massacre. Simpson had reportedly experienced depression, paranoia and resentment following his departure from the company, although the precise nature and extent of any mental-health problems were not publicly established through a trial or formal judicial proceeding.
The employment dispute provided investigators with a possible explanation for why Simpson targeted the Walter Rossler Company. His dissatisfaction with work assignments, refusal to return and dispute concerning educational money may have intensified his hostility toward the business and its owners.
The identities of the victims also suggested that at least some of the attack may have been personally directed. Wendy Gilmore was confronted first, while Walter Rossler, Derek Harrison and Richard Tomlinson were all connected to Simpson through his employment and the effort to convince him to return. Nevertheless, authorities did not determine why Joann Rossler was killed, why Gilmore appeared to be singled out first or why Simpson spared Lisa Rossler-Duff and her baby.
Scene and Community Reaction
Police and emergency crews secured the office building while relatives and friends gathered outside. Several family members were overcome by grief and shock as they waited for information. Some required medical attention or were placed on stretchers after learning that their relatives were among the dead.
The bodies of four victims remained inside the building for several hours while investigators photographed the scene, documented the locations of the victims, recovered firearms evidence and reconstructed Simpson's path through the offices.
The massacre became one of the deadliest criminal attacks in Corpus Christi history. Its impact was especially severe because the Walter Rossler Company was a relatively small, family-operated workplace where many of the victims and survivors were closely connected.
Limited National Coverage
The Walter Rossler Company massacre occurred only three days after Tejano music star Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was murdered in Corpus Christi on March 31, 1995. Selena's funeral was held on the same day as Simpson's attack.
Because Corpus Christi and national news organizations were focused heavily on Selena's murder and funeral, the workplace massacre received less widespread attention than an attack of comparable severity might otherwise have generated. The five victims nevertheless remained deeply remembered by their families, coworkers and the local community.
Aftermath
There was no criminal trial because Simpson died at the scene of the massacre. The absence of a trial also meant that much of the evidence concerning his state of mind, employment history and preparations for the attack was never examined publicly through witness testimony and cross-examination.
The April 3, 1995 killings are remembered as a deliberate workplace mass murder carried out by a former employee who returned armed to the company where he had once worked. Simpson killed five people in a matter of minutes, spared several others and then committed suicide, leaving the central question of his motive permanently unresolved.
