“The hand that k*illed your sons now ma*sturbates to the memory. F**k you all.”
TJ Lane muttered those words during his se*ntencing hearing in 2012. The 18-year-old was c*onvicted of a k*illing spree at Chardon High School near Cleveland, Ohio, that w*ounded three students and left three d*ead.
It was around 7:30 a.m. when TJ got up in the cafeteria and started shooting students with a handgun. There was chaos, and students were running everywhere. After a while, teacher Joseph Ricci and football coach Frank Hall chased Lane out of the school. A short time later, police caught him.
Why Did TJ Shoot Students at School?
Russell King Jr. was one of the victims. He and TJ did not get along and were having problems before the shooting. King Jr. started going out with TJ’s ex-girlfriend. For a year before the m*urder, King had been lifting weights to get ready to fight the boy. He told Lane he was going to beat him up.
The first person Lane shot in the cafeteria that morning was King Jr. He was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 12:42 a.m. the next day.
It’s not clear why Lane shot the five other students.
Ineligible for Death Penalty
TJ wasn’t eligible for the death penalty because he k*illed 17 people in a row when he was 17. The defendant, Lane, admitted to three counts of aggravated murder, two counts of attempted aggravated murder, and one count of felonious assault. The court gave Lane three life sentences without the chance of parole.
TJ Disrespectful in Court
TJ showed no remorse during his trial. Instead, he attacked and mocked the court and family of the deceased.
He took off his blue dress shirt and showed off the white t-shirt that the jail gave him. On it, he had written “Killer” in black marker. Then TJ smiled and gave the court the middle finger while saying, “The hand that pulled the trigger that killed your sons now masturbates to the memory.” “F*ck all of you.”
TJ Escapes From Prison
On the evening of September 11, 2014, TJ and three other prisoners broke out of the Lima Correctional Institute. The next morning, the men were quickly caught and sent to Ohio State Penitentiary, a high-security prison in Youngstown, Ohio.
2017 School Shootings
The attack at Freeman High School in Rockford, WA, on September 13 was one of at least 12 other school shootings that year. Three students were hurt and one died when 15-year-old Caleb Sharpe fired an AR-15 before it got stuck. After that, he switched to a handgun and kept shooting. He was stopped by a cleaner.
Two people were shot at Aztec High School on December 7. William Atchison, who is 21 years old, sneaked into school by pretending to be a student. He hid with a 9mm Glock handgun in a bathroom that wasn’t locked.
The cleaner saw him hiding in the bathroom and started yelling “active shooter” and “lockdown.” He ki*lled two students with a gun before being caught in the hallway. After that, he kil*led himself with a gun.
