Shooting at small christian college

[NotALoserLikeYou]

I was just reading the news and didn't realize it was a Christian school. But Accredited, and not fundie. But still very conservative. Premarital and homosexual sex are against the code of conduct. No smoking allowed. No drinking even off campus.

spu.edu/depts/studentlife/LifestyleExpectations.htm

I wonder who the shooter was? 1 killed, 3 wounded

cnn.com/2014/06/05/justice/seattle-campus-shooting/

Seattle Pacific University is a private, Christian university located on a 40-acre campus along the ship canal in the Queen Anne area of Seattle, about 10 minutes north of downtown.

[Dysfundamental]

It's a Methodist college, if I remember. Gorgeous campus.

What a sad and scary story.

[NotALoserLikeYou]

Yes, said it was founded by "Free Methodists" and that many denominations attended. It's apparently largely female, like 3 for every male.

[coffeebean7]

My sister goes to school there, and loves it. The shooting is so sad :( It's a pretty mainstream school with a good reputation.

[CrazyCatLady]

It is a free Methodist school. My husband and I got married on the campus, it is beautiful!

[CrazyCatLady]

aaaand the shooter has been ID'd...surprisingly, he wasn't a student there.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/718378- ... -shooting/

[infooverload]

A friend of mine graduated from there. Kind of funny someone brought up the rules of conduct. She was having pre marital sex and later they married and divorced. She is still a Christian, but not as conservative as she ussd to br.

[CrazyCatLady]

I applied to go to grad school there. They rejected me!

[Georgiana]

aaaand the shooter has been ID'd...surprisingly, he wasn't a student there.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/718378- ... -shooting/

I'm not surprised. I live in the area, and both SPU and SU are in bad areas of town with lots of violent crime. UW I'd be surprised, but I actually assumed the SPU shooting was by someone not from the school.

[RosyDaisy]

My sister goes to school there, and loves it. The shooting is so sad :( It's a pretty mainstream school with a good reputation.

coffeebean7, if you don't mind me asking, is your sister ok? I hope she was safe and not traumatized.

[CrazyCatLady]

I've lived in the area as well. SPU is in a very safe area!

[Georgiana]

I've lived in the area as well. SPU is in a very safe area!

Really? I've always had the impression it wasn't safe. Some of the reports from students even say that they didn't think anything of the police sirens because they are so common around campus.

Mind you, the U district seems safe when you're at UW, but in terms of crime stats and reputation, it really isn't. So it might be the difference of being on the outside looking in

[CrazyCatLady]

True. I lived near UW for a year. I was always vigilant but never felt unsafe.

[Black Aliss]

Really? I've always had the impression it wasn't safe. Some of the reports from students even say that they didn't think anything of the police sirens because they are so common around campus.

Mind you, the U district seems safe when you're at UW, but in terms of crime stats and reputation, it really isn't. So it might be the difference of being on the outside looking in

The UW neighborhood tends to attract more transient crazies, so there's an element of danger there, but no worse than any other urban university neighborhood. SU is nestled between a hipster area and a neighborhood that is assumed to be "bad" because it's largely populated by people who, oh, how to say this. . .,came from Africa or whose ancestors came from Africa. It's actually predominantly Ethiopian immigrants (don't think Kidist, please) and very safe. Plus, loads of amazing Ethiopian restaurants. But, SPU? I've never heard someone even suggest that North Queen Anne is a bad neighborhood. It's one of the more desirable parts of Seattle.

[coffeebean7]

coffeebean7, if you don't mind me asking, is your sister ok? I hope she was safe and not traumatized.

I don't mind at all, thanks for asking! She wasn't on campus that day, thankfully.

Regarding the safety issue, it's been a few years since I've been on the SPU campus but I never felt like it was in an unsafe part of Seattle.

[shedemei]

I'm not surprised. I live in the area, and both SPU and SU are in bad areas of town with lots of violent crime. UW I'd be surprised, but I actually assumed the SPU shooting was by someone not from the school.

WTF? I live two blocks SPU and it is FAR from a bad area of town.

[Jana814]

Such a sad story about what happened. But the a good that happened the student who pepper sprayed the guy got his whole wedding registry & honeymoon paid for by strangers.

[karen77]

wow, a lot of PNW'ers here!! (me too, just further north)

[shedemei]

I'd wonder if we know each other but I know few people in QA, and none of them live north of me.

TBH, while it makes me sad I'm just not shocked anymore. These mass shootings seem almost expected, and that makes me a bit ashamed of myself. As a society, we're really willing to accept violence and death. Car accidents, for example, are considered totally normal.

[Letgo]

Such a sad story about what happened. But the a good that happened the student who pepper sprayed the guy got his whole wedding registry & honeymoon paid for by strangers.

I read that the amount raised for John Meis, the student who pepper sprayed, then tackled the shooter, has hit $50,000!

[Jana814]

I read that the amount raised for John Meis, the student who pepper sprayed, then tackled the shooter, has hit $50,000!

Thanks for the info!! I didn't realize it was up that far!!

[shedemei]

Please keep in mind that Sarah Williams, the student that was shot and in critical condition, also has a go fund me page.

http://www.gofundme.com/a0s8ds

In my mind, she needs the money more as she will have huge medical bills to pay. It bothers me a little that people are more into rewarding someone that doesn't really need the money than someone who was a victim.

$50,000 for John Meis, but only $5409 for Sarah.

[shedemei]

Really? I've always had the impression it wasn't safe. Some of the reports from students even say that they didn't think anything of the police sirens because they are so common around campus.

SPU is on the main arterial that carries traffic from north Queen Anne, Ballard, and Fremont to downtown. Across the canal is the arterial that carries traffic from Ballard and its suburbs to downtown. Sirens are common here because emergency vehicles pass through a lot.

[shedemei]

Update on why he chose SPU:

Aaron Ybarra, the accused shooter at Seattle Pacific University, chose the small Christian college because he was unfamiliar with it, according to his journal released Tuesday evening.

“I can see that University of Washington and Seattle University represent Seattle more,†he wrote. “I didn’t want to have to attack my own city.â€

http://seattletimes.com/text/2024135168.html