Gunmen Goes on Active Shooter Rampage in Northern California Killing 5 and Injuring 9, Including Children

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November 15, 2017

Shooter's wife is found dead 'concealed under the floorboards' in his home as police say he set out to kill as many people as he could.

Via kcra.com:

The Tehama County assistant sheriff announced Wednesday morning that six people, including the gunman, were killed in a shooting rampage through a small Northern California town that left seven children injured.

Multiple shots were fired around 8 a.m. at Rancho Tehama School on Stagecoach Road on the outskirts of Corning, northwest of Chico, Assistant Sheriff Phil Johnston said.

"It was a bizarre and murderous rampage," Johnston said.

No children were killed in the shooting.

Johnston said that investigators served a search warrant Tuesday night at the home of Kevin Neal, who was identified by the sheriff's department as the shooter.

Officers were looking for Neal's wife at their home on Bobcat Lane, and during the service of the search warrant, her body was found hidden under the floor of the home, Johnston said. She had likely died as a result of several gunshot wounds.

"We believe that's probably what started this whole event," Johnston said.

Johnston also revealed that two semiautomatic rifles with "a number of" multi-round clips were seized from Neal's property.

"These firearms are manufactured illegally, we believe, by him at his home," Johnston said. "They were obtained in an illegal manner, not through a legal process. They're not registered."

CONDITIONS OF INJURED CHILDREN

Although there were no children killed in the shooting, one student was shot at the school and was taken to UC Davis Medical Center in critical condition, Johnston said Wednesday morning.

He was in a classroom and was shot twice -- once in the chest and once in the foot -- as bullets pierced the walls of the building, Corning Unified School District superintendent Richard Fitzpatrick said.

A second child and a woman were also shot inside a truck as they drove past the gunman, Johnston said. The boy inside the truck suffered non-life-threatening wounds, and the woman had serious, life-threatening injuries, Johnston said.

There were fourteen victims of the shooting rampage, including seven children. Four children were injured at the school. They're injuries ranged from very minor to the life-threatening injury of the boy who was shot inside the classroom, according to Johnston.

A 2-year-old was injured at a nearby park, but that child's injuries were non-life-threatening.

Five people -- at least three children -- were taken to Enloe Medical Center in Chico. Three of those patients have been treated and released, hospital officials said.

TIMELINE OF EVENTS

Multiple 911 calls came in to the Tehama County Sheriff's Department at 7:52 a.m. of shots fired with a man down in a neighborhood on Bobcat Lane near Fawn Lane in upper Rancho Tehama Reserve. The shooting spree lasted 25 minutes before the gunman was shot and killed by law enforcement.

Kevin Neal was identified Wednesday as the gunman responsible for the shooting.

Neal stole a white Ford F-150 where he initially began firing and went on a "shooting rampage throughout the community," Johnston said.

Soon after, multiple 911 calls indicated a number of shots were fired at several locations, including Rancho Tehama Elementary School.

Johnston said Neal tried to get into rooms at the school with the intent of shooting children, but staff initiated a lockdown that saved lives.

School officials heard about the shots fired in the nearby neighborhood and immediately locked down the buildings on campus.

"The shooter targeted the school from outside the school and shot inside the school with multiple rounds," Johnston said.

Johnston said it was "monumental" that school workers took the action they did, adding there is no doubt in his mind they saved the lives of countless children.

One child was shot inside a classroom when a bullet pierced through the wall of the building, Johnston said.

It appeared that Neal became frustrated by the lockdown, got back into the stolen truck and left the campus, Johnston said.

Neal eventually crashed the truck and carjacked a driver for his small sedan. Neal drove away in the car, and at some point, drove past a woman taking her children to school and fired gunshots "without provocation" into their truck, according to Johnston.

The woman suffered life-threatening injuries, and a boy inside the truck was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Johnston said.

Neal was "randomly picking targets" as he fired shots at seven shooting scenes in the area, Johnston said.

While in the car, Neal shot at two officers near the school, who returned fire, killing Neal, according to Johnston.

No officers were injured in the shooting.

Officers found a semiautomatic rifle and two handguns that were with Neal, Johnston said.

More than 100 law enforcement officers are investigating the shooting.

"People died here today, folks," Johnston said. "This is a very tragic event for all of us. There are children involved, it is an emotional thing. I am personally grateful to the men who engaged the suspect."

The Tehama County Sheriff's Department identified the shooter as Kevin Neal. He was shot dead by law enforcement officers during his shooting spree.

Neal had prior contacts with law enforcement officers and "was not law enforcement friendly," Johnston said.

Johnston said Neal was arrested in January for assault with a deadly weapon in connection with a dispute with a female neighbor. She was one of the people killed in the shooting.

Neal also had a restraining order against him that stemmed from the dispute, Johnston said.

Here is part of an interview with the man who says his truck was stolen and his roommate was shot and killed by the alleged shooter who is described as a known felon in his 50's named Kevin. #RanchoTehamashooting pic.twitter.com/ZNdwmdOwU7
— Sara Stinson (@SaraStinsonNews) November 14, 2017