BULLETIN: Mass Shooting At Delaware’s New Castle County Courthouse
A mass shooting occurred this morning at the New Castle County Courthouse in Wilmington, Del., multiple media outlets are reporting. Wilmington is the state’s largest city.
The Wilmington News Journal is reporting that two women were killed by gunfire and three other people were wounded. Among the wounded are two Capitol police officers. The gunman reportedly is dead.
A prosecutor in Kaufman County, Texas, was killed last month in a courthouse shooting.
Vice President Joe Biden is a former Senator from Delaware. His son, Joseph R. “Beau” Biden III, is the state’s attorney general. The vice president’s schedule today includes an appearance at Girard College in Philadelphia to hold a “roundtable discussion with law enforcement officials and Members of Congress on gun safety,” according to WhiteHouse.gov.
CNN is reporting that Wilmington’s police chief was expected to attend the event in nearby Philadelphia.
Two statements from Delaware State Courts, the official website of the Delaware judiciary:
1.) ___________________________________________________________
To offer assistance and information to witnesses, employees, jurors and others
affected by the violence of today, the following steps have been taken.
For anyone who witnessed today’s sad events or otherwise needs to speak to someone immediately about those events and their effect, please call the Delaware State Police Victim Center at 1-800 VICTIM1 or 1-800-842-8461.
For witnesses, employees or persons wishing to speak to the police, victim’s assistance or a counselor, help will be available from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. tomorrow (2/12/13) at the Goodstay Center of the University of Delaware, 2600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Wilmington, DE 19806.
To address any questions and concerns about today’s events, a briefing will be
scheduled for all New Castle County Courthouse employees only at lunchtime in the jury services room at 12:30 p.m. on the day the Courthouse reopens. Further information will be forthcoming about that briefing. Specific courts may schedule additional briefings to address court-specific concerns.
Please check in regularly for more information about the status of the New Castle County Courthouse and help for witnesses, jurors, and employees affected by today’s events.
The judiciary website is at http://courts.delaware.gov
2.) ___________________________________________________________
The New Castle County Courthouse will be closed for business tomorrow, February 12, 2013.
In view of the need to complete the investigation of the sad events that transpired today, to repair the facility, to allow the Capitol Police to prepare for reopening, and to otherwise ensure that the Courthouse can function at full efficiency, it would be imprudent to open tomorrow. The goal is to open
for business on Wednesday, February 13, 2013. All other courthouses will be open for business as usual February 12, 2013.
“The violence today has saddened and horrified all of us. I know I can speak for our entire judiciary in thanking the Capitol Police for risking their lives to protect as many of our citizens and employees as they could. Right now, the interests of justice require that we allow law enforcement and the Department of Justice to do their jobs and to have complete control and access to the Courthouse tomorrow. We also want to make sure that the needs of our employees, jurors and witnesses who were present in the Courthouse are met,” Chief Justice Myron T. Steele stated.
For employees, jurors, or other witnesses who desire counseling and help, additional information will be available on the state judiciary’s website later today, which is at http://courts.delaware.gov.
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Patrick