WILMINGTON, Del. (MyFoxPhilly.com) - ultiple people have been shot in the lobby of the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington early Monday morning.
Audio: Wilmington,DE Multi Shooting Common Pleas Court - 500 N. King St
posted courtesy ofAlertPage
Two women have been pronounced dead, authorities said during a 9 a.m. news conference. One of the women is the wife of the suspect and the other woman may be her mother. The gunman is dead although it is not clear if he was shot or suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The gunman, according to a law enforcement source, is named David Matusiewicz. He was in his mid 40's and has three children. He was in court for a child support modification hearing and was on Federal Parole.
Two capital police officers were also shot, authorities said. Their injuries are considered non-life threatening. Sgt. Paul Shavack told the media that the officers' bulletproof vests took the brunt of the shots. He also confirmed that this was not a random shooting.
Police are saying only that multiple people have been shot, but county officials posted to Facebook that the number may be as many as eight.
"There's been a terrible shooting in the City at the NCC Courthouse," said the message posted to Facebook and Twitter. "We're being told that 5-8 people have been shot. There may be as many as three deaths, including the suspected shooter. NCCPD was brought in to assist in clearing the building. Will update with more info as we become aware."
According to a Wilmington police, the alleged gunman walked into the lobby and opened fire. Capital police returned fire. Several people were transported to a local hospital. The extent of their injuries is unknown at this time.
The building was put on lockdown as SWAT teams cleared the floors of the building. The building is now secured.
FOX 29's Claudia Gomez was live on the scene almost immediately following the incident and filed several reports from outside the courthouse.
This morning, Sen. Carper released the following statement on the shooting:
"Sadly, no community in our country is immune to violence or senseless tragedy. Today, it struck at home. It's impossible to comprehend acts like the shootings that took place today at the Courthouse in Wilmington, but they serve as somber reminders of the need for our leaders in both Dover and Washington to have a thoughtful but urgent conversation about how to address and reduce gun violence in our state and nation. My heart goes out to the friends and families of those killed and wounded today, and I send my deepest thanks to the brave men and women in law enforcement who were there to protect and serve civilians. In the days and weeks ahead, we need to find out what happened here so we can do all we can to prevent it from happening again. But today we grieve for those lost and hurting."