The 20-year-old son of a sheriff’s deputy opened fire Thursday at Florida State University with his mother’s former service weapon, killing two people and wounding at least six others, investigators said.
Officers quickly arrived and shot and wounded the shooter after he refused to comply with commands, said Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell.
Authorities have not yet revealed a motive for the shooting, which began around lunch time just outside the student union, sending students and frightened parents hiding for cover in a bowling alley and a freight elevator inside the building.
The shooter, identified by police as Phoenix Ikner, is believed to be a Florida State student, investigators said.
He had obtained access to a weapon that belongs to his mother, who has been with the sheriff’s office for over 18 years, said Walt McNeil, Sheriff of Leon County. Police said they believed Ikner shot the victims using his mother's former service handgun.
The two people who died were not students at the university, said Florida State University Police Chief Jason Trumbower, adding that he would not release additional information about the victims.
Florida State University is one of Florida’s 12 public universities, with its main campus in Tallahassee. About 44,000 students are enrolled in the university, per the school’s 2024 fact sheet.
In 2014, the main library was the site of a shooting that wounded three people. Officers shot and killed the gunman, 31-year-old Myron May.
The university canceled all classes and events for Thursday. It also canceled home athletic events through Sunday.
(Associated Press)
