Patrick Sherrill

Patrick Henry Sherrill was an American mass murderer who perpetrated the Edmond Post Office Shooting, on August 20, 1986. Fourteen of his coworkers were killed and six others were left wounded. The massacre ended after fifteen minutes, when Sherrill shot himself in the forehead.

It is currently the sixth deadliest massacre perpetrated by a single gunman in U.S. history.

Background
Patrick H. Sherrill was an disliked man, he was a peeping tom, who would prowl around at night looking through people's windows. Children mocked him, he would chase other children while they yelled "Crazy Pat!". He was fired because he was reported for misdirected letters and outbursts against other employees. He told others the day before the massacre claiming he was being mistreated.

Edmond Post Office Massacre
Sherrill went to work with two mailbags that had three Colt 45s slung over his shoulder. He shot two people outside the post office. He then walked inside and shot a few others while they fled from the scene. He then walked around the office looking for more people. He shot people under desks. Sherrill shot poeple mutiple times after they were already dead. He took one of his pistols and shot himself in the forehead. The police tried to speak with him, not knowing he was already dead. They spent 45 minutes trying to communicate. They went inside the post office and saw the carnage. Fourteen had died at the scene and six others were injured.

Possible Motives
Sherrill's job title was relief carrier, meaning he was often required to work alternate routes on different days, a position dictated by his rank on the seniority list. His lack of a permanently assigned route meant that he did not rate the same job stability of other USPS workers. Opinions vary concerning his job performance. Some reports portray him as an erratic, irritable worker; others claim he performed well and was being picked on by management. In any case, on the afternoon of August 19, 1986, supervisors Esser and Bland reprimanded Sherrill for his behavior. Anger over this reprimand, coupled with anxiety that he was likely to be fired, could have been possible motives behind the attack the following morning.

Modus Operandi
Sherrill evaded detection by putting the guns in mail carrier bags. He then shot two people to get the others attention. Sherrill hunted down employees to shoot. He looked throughout the building and shot multiple people under desks and other furniture He shot people after they were already dead.

Aftermath
The shooting coined the term "Going Postal". Sherrill's attack left Oklahoma in shock. The shooting made a mark in American history and helped make more of these type of massacres more frequent.

Many other Post Office shootings happened in a ten year time period. One of these shootings was the case of John Merlin Taylor. John Taylor was a postal worker and was a model employee and was known to be kind. So it came as a shock when he shot and killed his wife before going to his work and killed two other postal employees. He shot himself after the attack and was taken to the hospital but was pronounced brain dead. He died hours later after the massacre.

Known Victims
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 * Multiple people being stalked by Sherrill through their windows.

Edmond Post Office Massacre
Fatalities Injuries
 * Patricia Ann Chambers, 41,
 * Judy Stephens Denney, 41,
 * Richard C. Esser Jr., 38,
 * Patricia A. Gabbard, 47,
 * Jonna Gragert Hamilton, 30,
 * Patty Jean Husband, 48,
 * Betty Ann Jarred, 34,
 * William F. Miller, 30,
 * Kenneth W. Morey, 49,
 * Leroy Orrin Phillips, 42,
 * Jerry Ralph Pyle, 51,
 * Paul Michael Rockne, 33,
 * Thomas Wade Shader Jr., 31,
 * Patti Lou Welch, 27,
 * William Nimmo
 * Gene Bray
 * Michael Bigler
 * Steve Vick
 * Judy Walker
 * Joyce Ingram }}

On Criminal Minds
In False Flag, the Edmond Post Office Shooting was one of several similar incidents that conspiracy theorist Melissa Miller claimed were staged by the U.S. government in order to increase gun control.