Michigan State University Shooting

Brief :

The university announced the postponement of all campus events, including athletics, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday while investigators continue to look for a suspect in a Monday night shooting on the Michigan State campus that left at least three people dead and five injured.

Interim deputy police chief Chris Rosman told reporters at a press conference that the initial reports of a shooting came in at 8:18 p.m. local time when some of the East Lasing, Michigan, campus and surrounding residents were under lockdown.

According to Rosman, gunfire occurred at two different buildings, and bodies were discovered in each. The first gunshot happened in a classroom building called Berkey Hall, while the second one happened in the student union.

"According to MSU Police, there has been a shooting on the East Lansing campus. This scenario is active and ongoing. Secure in place right away. Run, hide, then fight. If you can safely do so, run away from danger; if not, hide; and if you have no other choice, fight to defend yourself."

Athletics, classes, and all other campus-related activities are suspended for a period of 48 hours. Please refrain from visiting campus tomorrow.

There are more than 50,000 students enrolled at Michigan State, according to the university's website.

Men's basketball against Minnesota and men's tennis against Drake are two of the sporting activities planned for Tuesday and Wednesday. On Wednesday, the Spartans' women's basketball team will play against Purdue.

As of Monday night, there was no word on whether the women's basketball game will be impacted, nor any indication if the men's basketball and men's tennis games will be rescheduled.

As of Monday night, it was unknown whether the women's basketball match would be affected. Likewise, it was unclear whether the men's basketball and men's tennis matches would be postponed.

A clearer picture began to emerge Tuesday about the 43-year-old shooter with a previous gun violation who killed three Michigan State University students late Monday and critically wounded five others, but police were still searching for a motive.

Authorities said Anthony Dwayne McRae had once been on probation for the gun offense and had a history of mental health struggles. He shot and killed himself after a manhunt that ended in a confrontation with police miles from campus, authorities said Tuesday.

University police identified the three dead students as sophomores Arielle Anderson and Brian Fraser and junior Alexandria Verner. All three hailed from the Detroit metropolitan area. "It's a family's worst nightmare and it’s happening far too often in this country,” President Joe Biden said in Washington. “We have to do something to stop the gun violence that’s ripping apart our communities.''

Biden also released a statement calling for Congress to pass specific measures to tighten gun laws nationwide, noting that Tuesday marks the fifth anniversary of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

The president spoke by phone with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, an MSU graduate who said at a morning briefing, “Our Spartan community is reeling today.”

Investigators were still looking into why McRae fired inside the Berkey Hall academic building and the student union shortly before 8:30 p.m. Monday, leading to a campus lockdown and a three-hour search for the killer.

Michigan State student Jackie Matthews is from Newtown, Connecticut. She was in sixth grade when a gunman killed 20 students and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012.

After the shots rang out Monday night, she said she was once again a witness to carnage.

"The fact that the odds of me being in both of those places for two mass shootings is unfortunately not as unlikely as it is, for other people as well. Enough is enough. It just needs to end," Matthews said.

Classes at MSU will resume Monday.

A vigil is planned on campus Wednesday night to honor the victims.

Five students remain hospitalized in critical condition.